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MSGCU 2025 Year in Review
CLINTON TOWNSHIP, MI – Feb. 5, 2026 – Michigan Schools and Government Credit Union is proud to share 2025 achievements and highlights, including community support initiatives, award recognitions, and member service enhancements.
Making a positive impact.
To support its commitment to the credit union philosophy of “people helping people,” MSGCU provided over $340,000 in community support, helping individuals and numerous organizations across its branch office network.
Through its annual Giving Back program, MSGCU selected a deserving local organization near each of its 24 branches to receive a $1,000 donation. The funds, presented by branch team members to various organizations, support their efforts to make our communities a better place to live. Local fire and police departments and community organizations such as the Canton Cares Fund and Mission Oakland – Mandy’s Place, received donations to advance their missions of serving others.
To help curb hunger during the summer months, MSGCU partnered with Gleaners Community Food Bank and WNIC's Jay Towers in the Morning team to collect cereal donations at its branch offices for local students who rely on school breakfast programs. The cereal donations ensured they still had a meal to start their day during summer break. Members, team members, and the community donated over 1,500 boxes of cereal. To further support this initiative, MSGCU presented a $1,000 donation to Gleaners Community Food Bank, who used the funds to provide milk for the cereal.
MSGCU proudly presented $2,500 donations to the West Bloomfield Fire Department and Rochester Fire Department for the installation of KnoxBoxes in these communities. Locked doors and secured entry points can delay emergency response, and these devices enable first responders to rapidly retrieve entry keys and access cards to safely enter homes in emergency situations.
The credit union helped those facing natural disasters by providing a donation to assist families displaced due to the devastating wildfires in California. In Michigan, MSGCU provided a donation to support efforts to help those impacted by the early 2025 ice storm.
To help fight childhood cancer, MSGCU partnered with the ChadTough Defeat DIPG Foundation. This organization seeks a cure for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a form of childhood brain cancer, and provides navigation for impacted families. The credit union participated in the ChadTough Orange Out football game and RunTough Family Fun Day, with both events focused on raising awareness for this important cause.
MSGCU encourages team members to offer their time and talents to community organizations. Throughout 2025, credit union team members donated their time on a personal, professional, or civic level to 90 organizations across Southeastern Michigan, resulting in more than 2,750 volunteer hours. Organization-wide, MSGCU also supported various initiatives through donations and volunteerism, including helping Friends of Detroit Animal Care & Control and supporting Forgotten Harvest’s mission of providing nutritious food to local charities. Team members also donated new toys to local children’s hospitals during the holiday season.
The credit union also supported small businesses near its branch offices through CU Lunch Local, an annual credit union initiative where team members purchase lunch from their favorite local eateries. MSGCU was proud to support locally owned eateries with more than $5,000 in purchases across 52 restaurants.
Helping students and educators.
As a credit union founded by educators over 70 years ago, MSGCU strives to honor its educational heritage by supporting local students and teachers. The credit union was buzzing with excitement to partner with Baker College’s Royal Oak Campus and bring Bees in the D beehives and educational programming to the school through their financial contribution. This unique learning opportunity provided insight into pollination, environmental stewardship, and the importance of protecting bees.
MSGCU also has robust scholarship and Classroom Cash Grants programs to benefit local students and teachers. Since the inception of these programs, MSGCU has given over $2.1 million, furthering nearly 700 educational journeys for local students, and funding more than 1,300 innovative classroom projects for educators. In 2025, MSGCU provided over $187,000 through scholarships and grants to support career goals and enhance local classrooms.
Scholarships were awarded to students, certified educators, first responders, and those pursuing skilled trade certifications. The application period for the 2026 scholarship program is currently open through February 27 on the credit union’s website, msgcu.org/scholarships. The credit union will provide over $150,000 in scholarships in 2026.
MSGCU’s Classroom Cash Grants program launched over 20 years ago. This initiative provides up to $750 grants to teachers to help them bring innovative project ideas to life in their classrooms that would otherwise go unfunded. Grant recipients are determined through a public voting period. The 2025 program inspired the public to cast more than 107,000 votes for their favorite projects, and the credit union funded over $50,000 in grants to 70 educators from 51 schools in Southeast Michigan. Educators purchased resources to provide fun and interesting lessons for their students, enhancing their curriculum in science, math, literacy, and more.
Providing financial education.
MSGCU is dedicated to sharing financial literacy with members and the community. Throughout 2025, the credit union provided financial education to nearly 14,000 individuals through classroom presentations, Reality Fairs, in-person and virtual workshops, and its Interactive Financial Education platform, which allows users to take quick lessons or a full playlist on a variety of topics at their leisure. MSGCU also publishes blog posts on various financial topics to further promote financial education.
Honored by awards and accolades.
Last year, the credit union was recognized as a Best-in-Class Employer by Gallagher, a global insurance brokerage, risk management, and consulting services firm. MSGCU was also honored to receive a Top Workplace recognition from the Detroit Free Press for the 13th consecutive year. “MSGCU is dedicated to providing a positive work environment for our team members, with the goal of always delivering excellent service to our members,” said Steve Brewer, MSGCU President/CEO. “This award is especially meaningful since it demonstrates the pride we have in the work we do for our members and how we value our role as their financial champion.”
Enhancing member services.
To make banking in person more convenient for its members, MSGCU opened a second Rochester Hills branch in 2025. Located on Rochester Road, the branch office marked MSGCU’s 23rd location in Southeast Michigan. The credit union’s Clawson branch office started serving members in June, expanding its branch office network to 24 locations after T&I Credit Union merged into MSGCU last year. The merger ensured T&I Credit Union members continued to receive excellent service with increased access to financial products and services.
To fulfill its commitment of providing convenient and efficient member services, MSGCU implemented various improvements in 2025, including upgrading its online and mobile banking platforms to enhance the digital banking experience for members. The improvements included a refreshed, intuitive user interface for easier navigation and the addition of advanced features:
- Transfer and payment options were enhanced to provide an easier user experience, including the ability to view upcoming transfers and payments in transaction history.
- Members can hide, group, and move accounts, allowing them to customize their accounts screen and display accounts in the order they choose.
- The ability to switch between light and dark mode was added in the mobile app to offer advantages such as reduced eye strain, improved phone battery life, and enhanced readability.
The credit union also introduced free access to Greenlight, a debit card for kids and teens, to help its youngest members learn about money to support future financial success. With help from their parents, grandparents, or a trusted adult, the Greenlight app and debit card allows kids and teens to grow their financial skills in a safe and engaging way. The debit card is funded by the parent's MSGCU checking account and young members can learn smart spending habits as they make their own purchases. Parents can use the app to establish spending controls and notifications, assign chores, set goals with their kids, and demonstrate how their money will grow over time. Members also have access to a fun financial literacy game called Level Up™ that teaches kids and teens about money.
Looking ahead.
The credit union experienced another successful year in 2025 and the MSGCU team is looking forward to serving members in the year ahead. MSGCU will continue to provide value to its membership by providing competitive deposit and loan rates, and low to no fees. The focus on improving products and services for members will remain as the credit union seeks to continue its momentum of adding convenient banking options and enhancing current services.
“Last year’s accomplishments are a result of our dedication to providing an excellent experience for our members and ensuring our products and services support their financial goals,” said Brewer. “In 2026, we will continue to uphold our commitment to delivering financial tools and expert guidance to help our members easily manage their money, whether it’s online, by telephone, or in a branch office.”
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