University Bank

Company: University Bank, St. Paul, Minnesota
Company Description: Located in St. Paul, Minnesota, University Bank is a champion of community development and social responsibility. Through partnerships and programs focused on improving the Twin Cities distressed communities, University Bank has created affordable housing, financed small business development and supported non-profit organizations, making urban Saint Paul and Minneapolis a better place to live.
Nomination Category: Company, Office & Product Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Corporate Social Responsibility Program

Nomination Title: University Bank, the Leader in Improving our Urban Community

   1. Tell the story about what this nominated company achieved in 2004 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, University Bank serves the urban communities
of the Twin Cities. Through its innovative programs geared toward
economically-challenged neighborhoods, University Bank has become both a
community development leader and a resource for socially responsible banking.

Because of its community development mission, in 2001, University Bank was
honored as the first Minnesota bank to be designated a Community Development
Financial Institution—a stature it shares with fewer than 75 financial
institutions nationwide.

University Bank believes that what a business stands for is just as important as
what it sells.  As such, the bank offers its customers the following programs:

• Urban Revitalization Fund (URF)
      The URF is a socially responsible deposit fund that allows customers to
      achieve a “double bottom line”—earning competitive interest rates while having
      social impact within distressed neighborhoods.  The URF allows customers to
      support socially-conscious projects like affordable housing initiatives,
      small business development and non-profits.

• Neighborhood Lending Partnership (NLP)
University Bank’s loan guarantee program provides “gap financing” for families
and businesses to purchase or improve residential or commercial real estate. To
date, University Bank has loaned over $7,000,000, which has resulted in the
rehabilitation of numerous housing units and commercial buildings in urban
neighborhoods.

• Houses to Homes
Houses to Homes was launched in May 2000 to rehabilitate 1,000 homes in five
years. By April 2004, University Bank had financed the rehabilitation of 1,145
distressed homes in Minneapolis and Saint Paul – a year ahead of schedule.

University Bank is actively involved in making its community safer and more
successful. The bank requires all employees to volunteer in their local
neighborhoods. For every 40 hours worked in the bank, each officer must
contribute at least one hour of volunteer time.

Such hands-on responsibility to its clientele has always set University Bank
apart from its competitors and has engineered a culture where employees’
community work is lauded throughout the organization.  That atmosphere has
resulted in low employee turnover, lending that is focused on helping people,
and a work force committed to making a difference in their community and had
made University Bank one of the most successful community banks in Minnesota.

   2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: List each link on a separate line, begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.website.com]:

Supporting materials for this nomination were submitted offline.

   3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader of this nominated company:

David Reiling is president and chairman of  $114 million University Bank in
Saint Paul, Minnesota.  In 2001, Reiling was named one of The Business Journal’s
“40 Under 40,” and in 2002, Reiling was the winner of the first, and only, Ernst
& Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the “Socially Responsible” category.

Reiling is a graduate of the University of Southern California - Graduate School
of Business, and University of Wisconsin, Madison – Graduate School of Banking.
He has been in banking for fourteen years, including nine years at University Bank.