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CBA's PAC/PR Funds
Advocacy Update
Preferred Service Providers
Events Calendar
HR & Talent Development League
Conventions
Webinars
Compliance Professional Package
Banker Regulatory Forums
Community Bank Leadership Academy
Check Out Our
Preferred
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Providers!

CBA SVP/Professional Development
Embracing technology is a must for community banks to help drive down the efficiency ratio and improve the overall customer delivery experience. CBA is committed to helping our member institutions in this important area.
A few questions for your bank to consider:
At yesterday’s Innovation Committee meeting, Kristi Greer, CBA SVP/Professional Development, shared how the CBA Innovation Exploration Bundle was created to serve the needs of the beginning FinTech employee to the most advanced. Based on feedback from our members and the Innovation Committee, banks have training and resource needs in the area of technology. As part of the program, CBA’s partner WIPLFI will lead a Digital Assessment and Visioning session, April 20, designed to help community bankers filter out all the “noise” associated with the FinTech issue and begin to develop plans that are right for their respective institutions. Early bird pricing ends March 30th.
A few questions for your bank to consider:
- Do you have employees dedicated to finding and implementing technology solutions (FinTech, RegTech, etc.) at your institution?
- Does your bank have a digital mapping strategy?
- Are you providing the necessary training for your technology-focused employees?
At yesterday’s Innovation Committee meeting, Kristi Greer, CBA SVP/Professional Development, shared how the CBA Innovation Exploration Bundle was created to serve the needs of the beginning FinTech employee to the most advanced. Based on feedback from our members and the Innovation Committee, banks have training and resource needs in the area of technology. As part of the program, CBA’s partner WIPLFI will lead a Digital Assessment and Visioning session, April 20, designed to help community bankers filter out all the “noise” associated with the FinTech issue and begin to develop plans that are right for their respective institutions. Early bird pricing ends March 30th.

Welcome New Member—First Bank of Alabama
It is a pleasure to welcome Mr. Chad Jones, Pres/CEO, and the entire team at First Bank of Alabama, Talladega, AL, into CBA membership. First Bank of Alabama is an exceptional community bank located just across the state line. The bank’s firm commitment to its community and the community banking model aligns identically with CBA’s community bank-only membership and focus. The entire team here at CBA is looking forward to working with all at First Bank of Alabama!
It is a pleasure to welcome Mr. Chad Jones, Pres/CEO, and the entire team at First Bank of Alabama, Talladega, AL, into CBA membership. First Bank of Alabama is an exceptional community bank located just across the state line. The bank’s firm commitment to its community and the community banking model aligns identically with CBA’s community bank-only membership and focus. The entire team here at CBA is looking forward to working with all at First Bank of Alabama!
State of the Association
In the latest issue of the CBA magazine, Georgia Communities First, President & CEO John McNair provided a State of the Association summary highlighting leadership, advocacy, financials, professional development, innovation, CBA technology and more. Take a moment to read and learn more about progress at your association. |
Promote the Julian & Jan Hester Memorial Scholarship in Your Community!
Community Bankers Association of Georgia and Georgia community banks are accepting applications from local high school seniors for the Julian & Jan Hester Memorial Scholarship. This is a $1000 scholarship and will be awarded to 4 seniors throughout Georgia. Students must be planning to attend a Georgia university, college, or technical institute (two-year program or more) in the fall of 2022. The scholarship will be based on academic merit, not financial need. If you have a senior in high school or know of someone who would be interested, please let them know. Deadline for applications to be turned in to your bank is April 8, 2022, and all applications are due to CBA by April 15, 2022. Information and applications are here. Shoutout to Queensborough National Bank & Trust, Louisville, for the scholarship video.
Community Bankers Association of Georgia and Georgia community banks are accepting applications from local high school seniors for the Julian & Jan Hester Memorial Scholarship. This is a $1000 scholarship and will be awarded to 4 seniors throughout Georgia. Students must be planning to attend a Georgia university, college, or technical institute (two-year program or more) in the fall of 2022. The scholarship will be based on academic merit, not financial need. If you have a senior in high school or know of someone who would be interested, please let them know. Deadline for applications to be turned in to your bank is April 8, 2022, and all applications are due to CBA by April 15, 2022. Information and applications are here. Shoutout to Queensborough National Bank & Trust, Louisville, for the scholarship video.

PAC/PR Topgolf Showdown Atlanta
Top Contender Tournament, Teams of 6 Players, Buffet included. Join us April 13, for a one-of-a-kind event that is equal parts networking and golf tournament with friendly competition! This open-air tournament offers a way to connect and raise money for an important cause—CBA’s PAC Fund. Enjoy food, beverages, prizes, and support CBA’s PAC. Registration includes 3 hours of golf, food, unlimited non-alcoholic drinks, and an afternoon of fun! Registration ends 4/6. Register today!
Top Contender Tournament, Teams of 6 Players, Buffet included. Join us April 13, for a one-of-a-kind event that is equal parts networking and golf tournament with friendly competition! This open-air tournament offers a way to connect and raise money for an important cause—CBA’s PAC Fund. Enjoy food, beverages, prizes, and support CBA’s PAC. Registration includes 3 hours of golf, food, unlimited non-alcoholic drinks, and an afternoon of fun! Registration ends 4/6. Register today!

Ready, Set, Go! Celebrate Community Banking Month!
CBA makes celebrating Community Banking Month easy with our complimentary marketing toolkit. From banner ads for your website and social media to hashtags, a fact sheet and more, we have you covered. Check it out!
Wear Your New Community Banking T-shirt during April…If you have not ordered yours, use this link to place your order.
CBA makes celebrating Community Banking Month easy with our complimentary marketing toolkit. From banner ads for your website and social media to hashtags, a fact sheet and more, we have you covered. Check it out!
Wear Your New Community Banking T-shirt during April…If you have not ordered yours, use this link to place your order.

ICBA Capital Summit Set For May 1—4
Registration is open for the 2022 ICBA Capital Summit, the industry’s premier advocacy event scheduled for May 1—4 in Washington, D.C. This year’s Capital Summit will bring community bankers from across the country to Washington to interact with leading policymakers and advocate top advocacy priorities—in person. Join them in advocating for our industry. You have the power to share your personal story and put a name to our industry's key legislative priorities. Register here.
Registration is open for the 2022 ICBA Capital Summit, the industry’s premier advocacy event scheduled for May 1—4 in Washington, D.C. This year’s Capital Summit will bring community bankers from across the country to Washington to interact with leading policymakers and advocate top advocacy priorities—in person. Join them in advocating for our industry. You have the power to share your personal story and put a name to our industry's key legislative priorities. Register here.
![]() Sympathy
CBA extends our sincere sympathy to the family, friends and co-workers of Terry Giddens, who passed away on March 23, 2022. Terry was Senior Vice President of Merchants and Citizens Bank in McRae, where he had worked for 40 years. Read full obituary. CBA also offers our condolences to the family, friends and co-workers of Byron Nelson, who passed away March 24, 2022. Byron was a Banking Officer at The Claxton Bank. Read full obituary. |
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![]() Mauldin & Jenkins Named on Accounting Today’s Top 100 Firms List, Climbs Six Spots
CBA Preferred Service Provider, Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC, Atlanta, announces the firm has been named one of Accounting Today’s Top 100 Firms for its 28th year in a row. Climbing six spots, the firm comes in at number 77. The firm was also named on the Regional Leader list as a Top Firm serving the Southeast. Read more. |

Think CBA First for Your Professional Development Needs!
Be sure to think of CBA first when it comes to your training and Professional Development needs. Here are some upcoming CBA events:
Be sure to think of CBA first when it comes to your training and Professional Development needs. Here are some upcoming CBA events:

2022 Mortgage Lending School Sessions 1—4
April 4—7, 2022 | Atlanta
In cooperation with the Community Bankers Association of Georgia, Crescent Mortgage is proud to sponsor the reboot of the Mortgage School. This school is targeted at both bankers who want to enter the secondary market mortgage space and those that are already seasoned in mortgage origination. In-person sessions will be held at Crescent Mortgage headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. The Mortgage School will focus on the roles and functions within residential mortgage banking. Register today.
April 4—7, 2022 | Atlanta
In cooperation with the Community Bankers Association of Georgia, Crescent Mortgage is proud to sponsor the reboot of the Mortgage School. This school is targeted at both bankers who want to enter the secondary market mortgage space and those that are already seasoned in mortgage origination. In-person sessions will be held at Crescent Mortgage headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. The Mortgage School will focus on the roles and functions within residential mortgage banking. Register today.

Banker Regulatory Forum—Compliance
April 12 | STREAM
The goal of the Banker Regulatory Forum is to establish a dialogue with the state and federal regulators/agencies regarding their policies, procedures, and objectives. It also serves as a clearinghouse for CBA member concerns.
The regulatory agencies cover their hot topics first with questions from the bankers allowed at any time. In addition, if time permits, the regulators will answer any prepared questions submitted prior to the meeting. We ensure an open dialogue between bankers and regulators throughout the forum. Register here.
April 12 | STREAM
The goal of the Banker Regulatory Forum is to establish a dialogue with the state and federal regulators/agencies regarding their policies, procedures, and objectives. It also serves as a clearinghouse for CBA member concerns.
The regulatory agencies cover their hot topics first with questions from the bankers allowed at any time. In addition, if time permits, the regulators will answer any prepared questions submitted prior to the meeting. We ensure an open dialogue between bankers and regulators throughout the forum. Register here.

Time Is Almost Up: Solving CECL Compliance
April 12 | STREAM
CECL compliance grows more pressing by the minute. Some banks are still designing their process for estimating reserves. Others have moved past methodology testing and are already rethinking their approach. No matter where you’re positioned on the readiness spectrum, you will glean valuable takeaways from this webinar—like this reality: CECL doesn’t have to be so complicated or costly. Learn more and register.
April 12 | STREAM
CECL compliance grows more pressing by the minute. Some banks are still designing their process for estimating reserves. Others have moved past methodology testing and are already rethinking their approach. No matter where you’re positioned on the readiness spectrum, you will glean valuable takeaways from this webinar—like this reality: CECL doesn’t have to be so complicated or costly. Learn more and register.

Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta Announces AHP 2022 General Fund Offering
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (FHLBank Atlanta) announced today it will begin accepting applications for its 2022 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) General Fund round on June 1, 2022. Projects supporting the development of affordable rental and ownership housing in Difficult Development Areas as recognized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development can receive up to $750,000 in grant funding through FHLBank Atlanta member financial institutions and their community partners. All other projects can receive up to $500,000 in grant funding. Read more.
Representatives from FHLB Atlanta will be speaking at the April 19th Executive Channel.
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (FHLBank Atlanta) announced today it will begin accepting applications for its 2022 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) General Fund round on June 1, 2022. Projects supporting the development of affordable rental and ownership housing in Difficult Development Areas as recognized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development can receive up to $750,000 in grant funding through FHLBank Atlanta member financial institutions and their community partners. All other projects can receive up to $500,000 in grant funding. Read more.
Representatives from FHLB Atlanta will be speaking at the April 19th Executive Channel.

Link Building: What Is It and Why Is It Important to SEO?
Guest Article from CBA Preferred Service Provider Kasasa
Let’s face it, it’s an SEO world. This means it’s important to find new and effective ways to drive organic traffic via search engines — especially in the ultra-competitive banking industry. One highly effective way of doing that is through link building. First, we need to define what link building is. Simply put, link building entails creating hyperlinks from other websites back to your own. You see, it’s all about algorithms. Search engines are constantly “crawling” links between individual pages and between websites to define what a good link might be. A link FROM another website TO your website sends the message that your website is a quality resource on the subject—this is called a “backlink.” Read more.
Guest Article from CBA Preferred Service Provider Kasasa
Let’s face it, it’s an SEO world. This means it’s important to find new and effective ways to drive organic traffic via search engines — especially in the ultra-competitive banking industry. One highly effective way of doing that is through link building. First, we need to define what link building is. Simply put, link building entails creating hyperlinks from other websites back to your own. You see, it’s all about algorithms. Search engines are constantly “crawling” links between individual pages and between websites to define what a good link might be. A link FROM another website TO your website sends the message that your website is a quality resource on the subject—this is called a “backlink.” Read more.
Travelers Knows Financial Institutions. With dedicated policies for financial institutions, Travelers offers a range of insurance protection, including D&O, cyber, professional liability, financial institution bonds, ID fraud expense reimbursement and a full portfolio of property/casualty coverages. Choose either standalone coverage or a suite of coverages. Travelers has the flexibility to adapt to you and your business.
Contact Diana Baker at 404-386-7145 or visit their website. |
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