Financial Women in Texas (FWIT)

Ally Torres Olszynski?is the Community Engagement Project Manager, AVP at First National Bank Texas, and has been awarded our second professional development scholarship of $1,000!?In this role, Ally fosters community connections for sponsorships and engagement opportunities, manages all donations and sponsorship requests, and leads the bank’s financial literacy program. Ally is a FWIT Virtual member.?She attends meetings virtually but also plans to attend in-person meetings in Austin. Ally enjoys connecting with like-minded women in FWIT who have similar career paths, offer inspiration, encouragement and shared growth opportunities. Ally’s long-term goal is to expand the bank’s financial literacy initiatives and Lemonade Day program, strengthen her public relations and communication skills, and build a network of community partners. Ally plans to use her scholarship funds for the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Digital Communication Certificate Program, which concentrates on an advanced technical landscape for digital communicators working within branding, social media and content strategy to leverage a variety of digital tools through evolving channels and platforms geared to appeal to different audiences. Congratulations Ally!?Your new skills will be a wonderful asset for your career goals and our Association! #FWIT #scholarship #professionaldevelopment #womenimbanking #banks #communitybank

Julissa Alejandre is a Financial Manager for Epilepsy Foundation Texas and has been awarded one of our professional development scholarships of $1,000! Julissa handles the full accounting cycle and grant billing and works under the guidance of the CFO to ensure financial accuracy and compliance. With the FWIT scholarship funds, Julissa plans to attend the 2-day TXCPA Fall Accounting Conference & Technology Symposium. Julissa has been a member of FWIT since 2016. She served as the Houston Group Vice President for two terms and is currently serving as the President of the Houston Group. Julissa has long-term goals to obtain her CPA license. She would like to continue in her field and advance to the position of financial director and controller. Congratulations Julissa! We applaud your accomplishments and are honored to help you reach your goals! #FWIT #scholarship #professionaldevelopment #financialwomen

We had a blast at our November monthly meeting! Thank you to our speaker, Chris Suchan and our sponsor Texas Champion Bank it was a fun and informative session. We honored our milestone members celebrating their 15 years and pinned 2 of our newest! Learn more at: fwitexas.org Financial Women in Texas (FWIT)

Save the date for?Financial Women in Texas - San Antonio Group?Holiday Social on December 12!

Attention Austin group members! Be sure to register for the upcoming Holiday party ??

Thank you to Financial Women In Texas-East Texas Group for hosting a fantastic event!! #FWIT

Today for our 2024-2025 FWIT Leadership Team feature, we are excited to introduce Nichole Williamson. She will be serving as our Social Media Chair (aka the one managing LinkedIn ??) ? Meet Nichole below! ? What do you most look forward to in your role this year? I'm excited to learn more from experts in the financial?space. Although my background is not directly in banking but rather in marketing banks and their leaders, I know I will get so much value from the other members of FWIT and their insights. I'm also so thrilled to connect further with incredible women from all over the state of Texas! What is your Favorite FWIT memory? Speaking at the Financial Women in Texas - Austin Group and the Financial Women in Texas-Gulf Coast Group meetings was so wonderful! Everyone had great questions, and I really enjoyed learning more about everyone's goals and talking about accelerating trust as a banker. What is the best piece of advice you have received? Listening is the key to growing. In your opinion, what's the most important thing every member?should pay?attention to in the banking?industry? How to truly?leverage your own personal thought leadership to build awareness?for your role and your bank. The standard ways of marketing in banking are gone, and so I hope others look at the opportunity to expand their awareness and grow their impact within their communities. Who has been your biggest mentor and what impact?did they have on you? I have been fortunate to have many impactful mentors who have shaped my life. Rusty Shelton and Paige Velasquez Budde (Zilker Media) are two key people who have helped me develop and learn as I have grown in my career. I wouldn't be where I am today without them. #FWIT #womeninbanking #womeninleadership #banking #communitybanks #communitybanking

Had an amazing night with my fellow women bankers from Financial Women in Texas (FWIT). Sarah from Texana Bank won our donated movie basket. Already looking forward to next year's event. #citizensbank

Today, we are featuring our 2024-2025 FWIT Leadership Team member,?Shelley Stock! Shelley will be serving as our Historian. ? Get to know Shelley below! ? What do you most look forward to in your role this year? Being the Historian and starting a new Speaker Database for the FWIT Association, my hope is this will give me the opportunity to learn more about the association, open communication with other members, and get to know the Executive Board personally. What is your Favorite FWIT memory?? I have more than one! My first conference in San Antonio in realizing this is a true network of women getting to grow together, and staying in the famous Menger Hotel.?More recently, planning the 2024 FWIT Conference with the Gulf Coast Group of great ladies, and being a part of the Galveston Experience. What is the best piece of advice you have received?? Give it a try – I know you can do it. In your opinion, what's the most important thing every member?should pay?attention to in the banking?industry?? Stay diligent for yourself in what is going on in the banking / finance industry. You can attend conferences / events / trainings offered by our industry-related businesses, i.e., FWIT, IBAT, TBA, and others.?Keep yourself active on this constantly changing environment. What's one way you are looking to grow this year??? Get out of my comfort zone and gain some confidence in myself. Who has been your biggest mentor and what impact?did they have on you?? Cheryl Linder who was a long time co-worker at NewFirst National Bank (now she is with 3PR) and friend was one of the founding members of FWIT.?She has helped me step out of my box and encouraged me you can do this along the way! Thank you Shelley! #FWIT #womeninleadership #womeninbanking #banking #communitybank #communitybanking