RALEIGH, N.C. — Barbara Perkins has resigned from the board of the $57-billion State Employees’ Credit Union ahead of the end of her three-year term in October, Business North Carolina reported.
In an email to the publication, Perkins said she stepped down because her view of what is best for SECU differs from actions already taken or planned by the board. She declined to share her full resignation letter, citing board policy that limits public discussion of internal deliberations and requires directors to speak with a unified voice, Business North Carolina said.
The SECU board appointed former chair Mona Moon to fill Perkins’ seat through October, according to spokesperson Sandra Jones. Moon, a former executive administrator for the N.C. State Health Plan, previously served as an SECU director from 2016 to 2025, Business North Carolina reported.
Perkins was among three challengers who unseated board-backed incumbents in the credit union’s 2023 election, a contest shaped by member criticism of policy changes at the nation’s second-largest credit union. A key flashpoint was SECU’s move to risk-based auto lending — a departure from its long-standing practice of offering uniform interest rates to all members — which took effect in March 2023, Business North Carolina said.
SECU’s 11-member board is elected by its 2.7 million members, though turnout has historically been low; roughly 13,000 members voted in the 2023 election. Since then, the board has approved steps to expand voting access. Directors are unpaid aside from expense reimbursement, and defeated 2023 candidate Thomas Parrish returned to the board following last year’s election, Business North Carolina reported.