▶ Westerville
▶ Reynoldsburg
▶ Downtown Office
Leadership
Leadership at Education First Credit Union is comprised of a Senior Management Team, Executive Management Team and a Board of Directors. The board members are elected to serve through a democratic voting process by the membership of the credit union. The leadership team works hand in hand to ensure that the credit union’s everyday operations and long term goals are established and carried out. Our strong leadership guarantees that the credit union is able to recognize the ever changing needs of our members, develop new programs, and provide services and conveniences that best fit and serve the needs of our membership. We have a board of directors with diverse backgrounds and experiences which serves us well, and is representative of the membership we serve.
Julie Didlick , Chairperson
Columbus City Schools – Teacher
Jeffery Woodson – Vice Chairperson
Columbus State Community College -Professor Engineering & Transport Tech
Henry Bland III – Treasurer
H.C. Bland Realty Company – Owner/Broker; Columbus City Schools – Retired Teacher
Irma Turner – Secretary
Columbus City Schools – Retired Manager of Telecommunications and Data Center Operations
Ezetta Murray, Director
Retired Columbus Education Association – Staff Consultant
Barbara Overholser, Director
Columbus City Schools – Retired from Finance Department
Robert Secrest, Director
Columbus City Schools – Retired Administrator
Sound experience and industry knowledge are a significant strength of our leadership team at Education First Credit Union. The executive management team is obsessively dedicated to serving their members financial best interests, and creating a healthy and positive work environment where every employee is motivated to give their utmost on behalf of every member.
Michael J. Wettrich – President and Chief Executive Officer
Mike has over twenty years of regulatory experience at the State level. He worked with the Ohio Department of Commerce, in the Division of Financial Institutions as the Deputy Superintendent for Credit Unions. Prior to that, he was the Chief Examiner and Acting Deputy Superintendent for Credit Unions. He also served as the Regional Supervisor, covering Central/Southern Ohio, and as a Credit Union Examiner for Central/Southern Ohio area.
Mike is a graduate of Franklin University, Columbus, Ohio with his B.S. in Finance. He also served as the Board Chairman of the National Association of State Credit Unions, and he is a Certified Credit Union Examiner (CCUE) and a Certified Credit Union Supervisor (CCUS). Additionally, Mike is a member of the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).
Jared Elsass, Chief Financial Officer
Jared started his career in the financial services industry in May of 2003. He holds a B.A. in Finance from University of Toledo. He was a real estate loan officer at Savage Mortgage Services in Toledo, OH in 2003. In 2004, Jared joined American Share Insurance as a Financial Analyst. Over the next several years he was promoted to Senior Financial Analyst and then to Underwriting Supervisor. He was responsible for the monitoring and oversight of insured credit unions, and he worked directly with high-risk/problem institutions. Jared joined the management team at Education First Credit Union in October 2012.
Jason Thomas – Chief Operations Officer
Jason brings over fifteen years of managerial and operational experience in the financial services industry to his current position at Education First. He previously worked as a dedicated and results-driven manager at BMI Federal Credit Union where he supervised teams, managed operations, ensured compliance for online and direct lending accounts and oversaw key projects. Jason is a team-oriented and efficiency-driven leader with expertise in Project Management and Strategic Planning. He holds an MBA in Finance from Franklin University and is a Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor. Jason joined Education First’s management team in October 2019.
