Join your CCUA credit union peers for the 2026 CU Accelerate Conference in the heart of Boston, Massachusetts at the Omni Parker House.
The CU Accelerate website provides full details on the agenda, speakers, accommodations, and registration. Plus, check out recommendations for local activities and dining to make the most of your time in Boston. The site will be updated regularly with the latest speaker announcements and agenda highlights.
What to Expect: CU Accelerate 2026 brings together industry experts and thought leaders with a speaker lineup designed to ignite creativity, inspire meaningful conversations, and provide actionable insights. Attendees will have access to a packed agenda, including inspiring keynote sessions, dynamic panels, and fun opportunities to connect with peers.
CU Accelerate 2026 Registration Options:
- Credit Union Attendee: $725 per person
- Small Credit Union Attendee (for credit unions with assets under $200 million): $550 per person
- Young Professional (YP) Attendee: $550 per person
Tickets include access to all Accelerate-related conference materials, general sessions, lunches, receptions, and meals for the attendee.
- Guest Tickets: $395 per person
Includes Accelerate-related meals, receptions, and all breaks for a guest of a credit union attendee.
Registration Deadline
All tickets must be secured by Monday, April 17, 2026, at 11:59 PM. Please indicate any dietary, health, or mobility accommodations when completing registration.
Cancellation Policy
Cancellations must be emailed to Janelle Mullen at jmullen@ccua.org. Full refunds are available if received by Tuesday, April 18, 2026. No refunds will be issued for cancellations after this date. Substitute attendees are welcome anytime.
Omni Parker House Boston Hotel
Located in the heart of downtown Boston, the Omni Parker House blends historic charm with modern comfort. It sits just steps from Boston Common, the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall Marketplace, and more.
Guest Room Rate: $299 + taxes/fees per night (CU Accelerate tickets do not include room accommodations)
- Complimentary in-room WiFi
- 24-hour fitness center, including Peloton bikes
- Valet parking available for CCUA guests
- Full-service business center and meeting space
The special room rate is available two days before and after the conference, based on availability.
Reservation Details:
Book your stay online through our exclusive link for the CCUA CU Accelerate 2026 Conference.
Reservation Deadline: April 3rd, 2026
Reserve Your Discounted Stay at Omni Parker House Boston
Friday, May 1, 2026
9:30 AM - 4:00 PM: Registration
Rooftop Level
11:15 AM – 11:30 AM: Welcome
Rooftop Ballroom
Ronald McLean, President & CEO
Cooperative Credit Union Association
11:30 AM - 12:30 PM: Opening Keynote
Rooftop Ballroom
Go For Gold — Teamwork, Toughness, and Tenacity
Lindsay Tarpley, Founder, Olympian, Leadership Expert, Keynote Speaker, and High-Performance Mentor
12:30 PM – 2:00 PM: Lunch
Rooftop Ballroom
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM: Keynote Session
Rooftop Ballroom
Session details coming soon!
Rhian Horgan, CEO at Silvur
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM: Networking Break with Sponsors
Rooftop Ballroom
3:30 PM – 4:30 PM: Keynote Session
Rooftop Ballroom
Session details coming soon!
John Ainsworth, General Manager at Metallicus
4:00 PM: Hotel Check-In
Main Lobby
5:00 - 6:00 PM: Welcome Reception
Wheatley Terrace
6:00 PM: Dinner on Your Own
Saturday, May 2, 2026
7:30 AM - 2:00 PM: Registration
Rooftop Level
7:30 AM - 9:00 AM: Breakfast
Rooftop Ballroom
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM: Keynote Session
Rooftop Ballroom
Industry Economic Update & Outlook
Steven Rick, Chief Economist at TruStage
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM: Networking Break with Sponsors
Rooftop Ballroom
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM: General Session
Rooftop Ballroom
Disputes to Delight
Shanthi Shanmugam, CEO & Co-founder at Casap
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM: Lunch
Rooftop Ballroom
1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Panel Discussion
Rooftop Ballroom
Empowered Members, Stronger Communities: The Role of Financial Education
Facilitator: Ken Senus, President & CEO at St. Mary's Bank
Panelists: Eric Loehr, Chief Revenue Officer at Reseda Group | Criss Cole, Vice President at Array | James Chemplavil, Founder at Salus
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM: Closing Keynote
Rooftop Ballroom
Cooperative Power
Renée Sattiewhite, President & CEO at African-American Credit Union Coalition
3:00 PM: Free Time and Dinner on Your Own
Welcome to CU Accelerate, the event that unites credit union professionals and top industry speakers. This exclusive gathering offers sponsors unmatched visibility and access to over 200 credit union leaders and decision through dedicated networking sessions, meals, and an engaging opening reception.
The CCUA extends its gratitude to the sponsors supporting CU Accelerate 2026. Click on any sponsor logo below to learn more about their offerings. Check back soon for our full list of sponsors!
Interested in having your company featured in Boston, Massachusetts at CU Accelerate? Email dmartino@ccua.org or more details on how to get involved.
Title Sponsor
Event Sponsor
Sponsors
Lindsay Tarpley
Founder, Olympian, Leadership Expert, Keynote Speaker, and High-Performance Mentor
Opening Keynote Session
Friday, May 1st at 11:30 am
Go For Gold — Teamwork, Toughness, and Tenacity
Lindsay Tarpley is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, leadership expert, entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and mentor. As one of the most accomplished players in U.S. Women’s Soccer history, she now helps individuals and teams elevate performance through mindset, resilience, and purpose driven leadership.
With 125 international appearances and a pivotal role in two Olympic gold medal runs, Lindsay brings world class experience to her work as founder of the World Champion Soccer Academy and cofounder of N LITE Talent, where she develops young athletes through a holistic, growth focused approach.
As a keynote speaker, Lindsay shares powerful lessons on high performance, adaptability, and team culture, drawing from her Olympic journey to deliver practical, inspiring insights tailored for each audience.
Rhian Horgan
CEO at Silvur
Keynote Session
Friday, May 1st at 2:00 pm
Session details coming soon!
Rhian Horgan is the CEO of Silvur, a retirement innovation leader, best-selling author, and advocate for modernizing financial security. Through Silvur, an award winning platform empowering adults 50 plus, she helps Americans retire with clarity and confidence.
Silvur has supported more than 120,000 people with tools like the Retirement Score and Retirement School, offering guidance on key decisions throughout the retirement journey. Before founding Silvur, Rhian served as a Managing Director at JP Morgan Chase.
As a keynote speaker, she shares practical insights on retirement readiness, financial resilience, and the future of Social Security.
John Ainsworth
General Manager at Metallicus
Keynote Session
Friday, May 1st at 3:30 pm
Session details coming soon!
John Ainsworth is the General Manager at Metallicus, bringing over 30 years of experience in the financial services and technology sectors. Prior to joining Metallicus, he served as President and CEO of CULedger (Bonifii), leading innovation in digital identity solutions for credit unions. His career includes leadership roles at industry giants such as Truist, Visa International, and MasterCard.
John also serves as a board advisor to EQUE and CUHealthPaycard and holds board positions with two nonprofit organizations: Faithful Servants Care Foundation and Energize Ministries. He lives in Point Harbor, North Carolina, and is a proud father of five.
Steven Rick
Chief Economist at TruStage
Keynote Session
Saturday, May 2nd at 9:00 am
Economic Outlook and its Impact on Credit Unions
Steven Rick is the director and chief economist at TruStage™, where he leads strategic research, analysis, and forecasting for the financial services industry, focusing on the credit union market. His insights help bridge the connections between the economy, financial services, and organizational planning. Steven authors the Credit Union Trends Report, a monthly economic update for the credit union movement, and has published a textbook on asset-liability management.
With over two decades of experience as senior economist for America’s Credit Unions, Steven also chairs the board of the University of Wisconsin Credit Union, a $5 billion institution. He is a senior lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, teaching courses in money, banking, and macroeconomics, and facilitates the CUNA Management School’s Stanford Bank Game simulation.
Shanthi Shanmugam
Co-founder & CEO at Casap
Keynote Session
Saturday, May 2nd at 10:30 am
Disputes to Delight
Shanthi Shanmugam is the Co-founder and CEO of Casap, an agentic AI platform reinventing how credit unions resolve payment disputes and fight first-party fraud. Casap replaces fragmented, manual back-office workflows with intelligent automation that delivers outcomes that are faster, fairer, and far more accurate than humans alone.
Before founding Casap, Shanthi spent six years at Robinhood, scaling operations through hypergrowth and launching major products including Crypto and 24/7 live support. There she saw how compliance-heavy, manual processes drained resources and hurt customer experience, and how smart automation could change that.
Motivated by the belief that credit unions deserve better tools, she founded Casap to level the playing field, reduce operational cost, strengthen member relationships, and deliver faster, fairer, more transparent outcomes through AI. Her mission is simple and bold: build a future where trust is given and fraud is rare.
Ken Senus
President & CEO at St. Mary's Bank
Panel Facilitator
Saturday, May 2nd at 1:00 pm
Empowered Members, Stronger Communities: The Role of Financial Education
Ken Senus is an experienced executive with over 30 years of banking experience. His career began upon graduation with an Accounting degree from Utica College of Syracuse University and becoming an internal auditor with Fleet Bank. Growing professionally into a strong leader, manager, and communicator delivering exceptional service, he later became the Operations and IT Director at Bank Rhode Island, before moving into the CIO role with Navigant Credit Union in 2009. Finding his passion for the credit union mission of “people helping people,” he continued his career in the role of COO for St. Mary’s Bank beginning in 2017 before being named the ninth President/CEO in 2023.
Eric Loher
Chief Revenue Officer at Reseda Group
Panelist
Saturday, May 2nd at 1:00 pm
Empowered Members, Stronger Communities: The Role of Financial Education
Eric Loehr is the Chief Revenue Officer at Reseda Group, where he oversees business development and demand generation, partner retention and growth, brand innovation, and reputation management. Prior to joining Reseda Group, Eric was the Vice President of Michigan Solutions at the Michigan Credit Union League (MCUL), where he was responsible for identifying, evaluating, contracting, and onboarding new MCUL partners. He also spent 19 years in the telecom technology space, including managing the Sprint Credit Union Program. Throughout his career, Eric has held various sales leadership roles, selling into both the government and enterprise sectors.
Eric resides near Ann Arbor, Michigan, with his wife of 28 years, Anne, and is nearby his two grown children.
Crissi Cole
Vice President at Array
Panelist
Saturday, May 2nd at 1:00 pm
Empowered Members, Stronger Communities: The Role of Financial Education
Crissi Cole is a fintech leader and former Goldman Sachs wealth management professional, where she spent nearly a decade advising ultra-high-net-worth clients and building sophisticated trading and technology platforms. Motivated by the stark gaps she saw in access to financial guidance, she founded Penny Finance in 2020 to help everyday individuals—especially women—pay down debt, build confidence, and begin investing. Following Penny Finance’s acquisition by Array in 2026, Crissi now leads Sales & Growth for Personal Financial Management, bringing her mission of accessible, inclusive financial wellness to a broader audience through scalable technology. She lives in Boston with her husband and their two young children.
James Chemplavil
Founder & CEO at Salus
Panelist
Saturday, May 2nd at 1:00 pm
Empowered Members, Stronger Communities: The Role of Financial Education
James Chemplavil is the Co-founder and CEO of Salus, the automated digital underwriting platform that removes unnecessary costs and barriers to real-time microlending. Lenders using the Salus platform have helped thousands of sub-prime microloan borrowers save over $1.7 million versus costlier, predatory alternative loans. Prior to launching Salus, he spent 16 years underwriting high-risk debt in the corporate investment space through multiple credit cycles. In addition to his credit expertise, James has focused his efforts on impacting the underserved as a board member of Classroom Central, a Charlotte-based nonprofit that supports lower-income students in the Charlotte and outlying areas.
Renée Sattiewhite
President & CEO at African-American Credit Union Coalition
Closing Keynote Session
Saturday, May 2nd at 2:00 pm
Cooperative Power
Renée Sattiewhite is President and CEO of the African American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC) and a nationally recognized leader in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She launched the Commitment to Change: Credit Unions United Against Racism initiative, helping mobilize the industry toward racial equity and economic justice.
Her leadership earned AACUC the 2021 Anchor Award from the National Credit Union Foundation. Renée is a certified diversity professional, sought-after speaker and coach, and serves on the World Council of Credit Unions Foundation Board
Friday, May 1, 2026
Opening Keynote Session: Go For Gold — Teamwork, Toughness, and Tenacity
Lindsay Tarpley, Founder, Olympian, Leadership Expert, Keynote Speaker, and High-Performance Mentor
In today’s fast paced and high pressure environments, sustained success isn’t built on talent alone; it comes from clarity of purpose, disciplined preparation, and the ability to respond when plans inevitably change.
In Go For Gold: Teamwork, Toughness, and Tenacity, I share the mindset and performance principles I learned while competing for the U.S. Women’s National Team in the Olympic Games and World Cup and how those same principles translate directly to business, leadership, and team performance.
This keynote moves beyond inspiration and delivers practical, applicable strategies your team can immediately use. Through real stories of pressure, setbacks, and championship moments, audiences learn how elite performers prepare, adapt, communicate, and execute when it matters most.
We explore how individuals contribute to team success even when personalities, roles, and expectations differ and how resilience and accountability drive long term results.
Your audience will leave with tools to:
- Overcome obstacles and adjust quickly when challenges arise
- Become stronger teammates across different working styles
- Apply elite performance principles directly to their own role
- Define and pursue their own “gold medal moment," both professionally and personally
The goal is simple: equip your people not just to perform once, but to perform consistently together.
Saturday, May 2, 2026
Keynote Session: U.S. Economic Outlook & its Impact on Credit Unions
Steven Rick, Chief Economist at TruStage
The U.S. economy is experiencing historic demand and supply shocks leading to the highest inflation in 40 years. The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates at the fastest pace in 40 years. What will higher interest rates do to the economy in 2024 and beyond? Are fundamental changes in the jobs market apt to cause long-term labor shortages and wage pressures? Explore the possible paths of the economy and what impact it will have on credit union balance sheets and income statements for the next two years.
Keynote Session: Disputes to Delight
Shanthi Shanmugam, Co-founder & CEO at Casap
How you handle disputes can significantly impact your brand reputation and member loyalty. Today’s members expect fast, transparent, and empathetic resolution experiences similar to what they receive from leading consumer brands. This session will explore evolving member expectations, strategies for turning disputes into positive trust-building moments, and best practices for preventing first-party fraud while maintaining a fair and efficient dispute process.
Closing Keynote Session: Cooperative Power
Renée Sattiewhite, President & CEO at African-American Credit Union Coalition
Renee Sattiewhite believes strongly that credit unions make a difference in the lives of people. She also believes that the reason credit unions will continue to do well for people in the future is that they are structured as cooperative business organizations. They have Cooperative Power. For that reason, it is important that credit unions and their support organizations do what it takes to advance the cooperative business charter and expand the U.S. cooperative ecosystem. The starting place is for credit union leaders to believe that Cooperative Power is a significant key to their success.
A Rich History in the Heart of Boston
Located in downtown Boston, the Omni Parker House is one of the most historic hotels in the United States. Opened in 1855 by Harvey D. Parker, the hotel quickly became a gathering place for writers, politicians, and cultural icons. Over the years, notable guests have included Charles Dickens, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and John F. Kennedy. The hotel is also famous for introducing beloved Boston desserts like the Boston Cream Pie and Parker House Roll.
Today, the Omni Parker House remains a Boston landmark, blending historic charm with modern comfort in the center of the city’s vibrant downtown.
Things to Do Near the Omni Parker House
The hotel’s central location places visitors steps away from many of Boston’s most iconic landmarks and attractions.
Historic & Cultural Attractions
- Freedom Trail (steps away) – Follow this 2.5 mile red brick path connecting 16 historic sites from the American Revolution.
- Boston Common (5 minute walk) – America’s oldest public park and the starting point of the Freedom Trail.
- Faneuil Hall Marketplace (10 minute walk) – A historic marketplace filled with shops, restaurants, and street performers.
- Massachusetts State House (6 minute walk) – The iconic gold dome building overlooking Boston Common.
- Old State House (7 minute walk) – One of the oldest public buildings in the United States and a key Revolutionary War site.
Museums & Experiences
- Museum of African American History (12 minute walk) – Explore the history of Boston’s Black community and abolitionist movement.
- Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum (15 minute walk) – An interactive museum bringing the American Revolution to life.
- New England Aquarium (18 minute walk) – Home to marine life exhibits, an IMAX theater, and Boston Harbor views.
Outdoor Activities
- Boston Public Garden (8 minute walk) – Stroll through beautifully landscaped gardens and ride the famous Swan Boats.
- Charles River Esplanade (15 minute walk) – A scenic waterfront park perfect for walking, jogging, or relaxing by the river.
Where to Eat Near Omni Parker House
Boston offers everything from historic taverns to modern dining, many just steps from the hotel.
Historic Dining
- Union Oyster House (7 minute walk) – America’s oldest continuously operating restaurant, famous for oysters and classic New England seafood.
- The Bell in Hand Tavern (8 minute walk) – One of the oldest taverns in the country serving classic pub fare.
Seafood & Local Favorites
- Legal Sea Foods (12 minute walk) – A Boston institution known for clam chowder and fresh seafood.
- Neptune Oyster (14 minute walk) – A small but legendary spot for lobster rolls and oysters.
Casual & Cafés
- Tatte Bakery & Cafe (8 minute walk) – A popular café for coffee, pastries, and light meals.
- Caffe Nero (5 minute walk) – A cozy café perfect for espresso and breakfast bites.
Plan Your Visit
Whether you’re exploring historic landmarks along the Freedom Trail, enjoying Boston’s renowned seafood, or discovering the city’s vibrant neighborhoods, Boston offers a unique blend of American history and modern culture, all just steps from the Omni Parker House.
