Thursday, September 17, 2015

Centeno Elementary To Kick Off First Minitropolis With Commerce Bank Visit

Kassandra De Leon, Centenoville Commerce Bank president, learns from Ignacio Urrabazo
Kassandra De Leon, Centenoville Commerce Bank president, learns from Ignacio Urrabazo, Commerce Bank president and CEO, how to do her new-found duties.

The children involved in the inaugural Centenoville Minitropolis® program kicked off this school year with learning real world job skills from employees at Commerce Bank on Thursday, Sept 17. More than 25 students from Centeno Elementary gathered at the Commerce Bank main branch to learn their roles as bank tellers and managers for the 2015 - 2016 school year.

During the bank visit, Centenoville employees received on-the-job training by working alongside tellers and executives, including Commerce Bank President and CEO Ignacio Urrabazo. During this time they learned the value of financial literacy, what it means as they grow up and the importance of learning life skills provided through the Minitropolis® program.

'Teaching the value of money at a young age becomes a fun experience for the kids participating in the Minitropolis program,' Urrabazo said. 'By earning their money throughout the school year, and learning to save it for a special purchase, we hope they are taking away lessons that will benefit them for a lifetime. We're thrilled to have Centeno Elementary on board with this program.'

The hands-on experience the students receive is made possible with the support of the school's administration and teachers. Commerce Bank has worked closely with the school staff to get the Minitropolis® off the ground, and will continue to work with them to improve the opportunities. In addition to Commerce Bank, the city of Centenoville has student employees working at Post Office, Border Patrol and the recycling center.

Commerce Bank is a member of International Bancshares Corporation (NASDAQ: IBOC), a $12.1 billion multi-bank financial holding company headquartered in Laredo, Texas, with 210 facilities and 320 ATMs serving 88 communities in Texas and Oklahoma. Commerce Bank has been serving the Laredo community since 1982 and has a retail branch network of four locations. Commerce Bank was named Business of the Month by the Laredo Chamber of Commerce in June 2012 in recognition of its strong advocacy and support of entrepreneurial business growth. Visit us on our YouTube channel, IBCBankWeDoMore. MEMBER FDIC / INTERNATIONAL BANCSHARES CORPORATION. More information is available at www.ibc.com.

distributed by