This morning we met with Barry Irish, President of Sterling Bank, this morning. Sterling is a local bank that was formed in 1958 and was family owned until the early 1990’s. They have six branches between the Twin Cities and Rochester. In the 1990’s they expanded to offer insurance and a financial planning component. This allowed them to offer everything you need in one stop. Over the years they have seen less traffic in the bank due to the increase in the online presence of banking which allows customers the option to bank from home. This is not stopping them from growing and can’t replace the human aspect. Sterling continues consider locations to expand to by looking for areas that are growing and where there is a market where they can succeed. When asked what they look for in hiring Barry shared that he looks for a positive attitude. He shared that he can train someone in a lot of areas, but he can’t train someone’s attitude. This is a theme that we hear throughout many of our visits. Thank you for a fantastic visit! Austin Public Schools Pacelli Catholic Schools