A Leader

Alvaro Macias has spent most of his professional life working to empower the communities traditionally underrepresented in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. He is Vice President of Business Development at Ascentra Credit Union, a certified CDFI, with $494 million in assets and over 40,000 member-owners. There he leads their Latino Outreach Program, the Community Development Advisory Council, financial wellness education efforts and grant-funded community partnerships.  

Alvaro conducts engaging financial education presentations for schools, colleges, churches, and community organizations in English and Spanish.  He has been involved in advocacy efforts to protect financial choice for consumers and help provide opportunities for underserved segments of our population to have access to mainstream financial services. He holds two industry certifications including the Credit Union Business Development Professional (CUBDP) and the Credit Union Development Educator (CUDE) designations.  

 

In 2014, he was a finalist for the Next Top Credit Union Executive, a national competition from the trade association Credit Union Executive Society (CUES), which earned him an opportunity to present for over 400 executives attending their annual conference.  He has been a speaker and presenter in regional and national conferences. In 2017, he was selected as a Credit Union Times’ “Trailblazers 40 Below” and was featured in the trade magazine.

Alvaro is active with community organizations that promote culture, leadership, and entrepreneurship such as Junior Achievement and LULAC. He serves on the boards of the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce - Finance Committee member, Q2030, and Economic Growth Corporation, a local and national leader in developing innovative and attainable housing opportunities.  He also serves on the Program Coordination Committee for the Moline Housing Authority’s Family Self-Sufficiency Program and the Promotions Committee for the Downtown Bettendorf Organization. 

Alvaro participated in the multi-city learning collaborative called CEOs for Cities Conference (now Forward Cities), with a Quad Cities delegation of leaders and elected officials. He has served as Chairperson and board member for the Greater Quad Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Leadership Council for The Network/QC Young Professionals Network, and participated in the QC Leadership Academy. 

When they are not driving their three daughters around to their school activities, Alvaro and his wife Jaclyn enjoy spending time with extended family, traveling, regional festivals, and running in local 5k races.  Alvaro and his family live in the historic Glen Oaks neighborhood and love spending time with their neighbors.