The Council Foundation awarded $380,000 in academic scholarships to 75 interns during the 2022–2023 program year, continuing its mission to attract young talent to commercial insurance brokerage careers. Scholarship recipients completed internships at member firms across the country, gaining professional experience and industry mentorship. The program helps address the insurance industry's talent gap by creating a structured pathway for college students to enter commercial brokerage.
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Contact: Nicole Vasile
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THE COUNCIL FOUNDATION AWARDS $380,000 IN ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIPS TO 75 INDUSTRY INTERNS
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Council Foundation announced today that it is awarding $380,000 in academic scholarships to 75 college students interested in pursuing careers in insurance brokerage. Each intern selected will receive $5,000 toward their college education. Since 2006, The Foundation has awarded $3.23 million to 646 students across the country, including $1.98 million to 409 students in the last five years alone.
The Foundation’s scholarship program partners with leaders of internship programs at Council member firms, with the goal of eventually bringing these students on fulltime, and/or retaining them in the commercial insurance brokerage sector.
“The Council welcomes its own interns each summer, and it’s exciting to watch them discover how dynamic and multifaceted our member firms are, and how many career opportunities exist within the industry,” said Ken A. Crerar, president/CEO of The Council. “The Foundation’s Scholarship Program is an importance piece of our efforts to recruit and develop the next generation of insurance professionals, and we’re grateful to our member firms who continue to support its mission.”
The mission of The Council Foundation is to bring fresh, diverse talent into the brokerage sector. Students must be formally nominated by the respective brokerages at which they interned. In awarding the scholarships, an independent selection committee looks for candidates who have the potential to excel as leaders and contributors to the industry post-graduation.
“Being chosen as a recipient for the CIAB Scholarship is an absolute honor because it is validation for the hard work,” said Joseph Sinicropi, intern at Risk Strategies and student at Providence College. ”I have put into my 10-week internship program at Risk Strategies Company. These past ten weeks have been a great learning experience, and my biggest takeaway is to never shy away from asking questions. I did not know much about the insurance industry before this summer but through asking questions I was able to make the most out of the experience. Thank you to the CIAB Foundation and Risk Strategies for this amazing opportunity!”
“This scholarship means so much to me, and I am so grateful for The Council and what a wonderful experience I have had this summer during my internship,” said Kimberly Santaguida, intern at IMA Financial Group and student at Colorado Christian University. “Having the experience of working full time in a field that is likely to be something that is long term was wonderful, and I’m glad the council provided comprehensive training in insurance education to help my background knowledge improve! This scholarship will help me pay for my last year of school, and I’m so grateful!”
The Council Foundation is a 501c(3) organization administered by The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers. Contributions made to the Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law.
The 2022-23 scholarship recipients are listed below. Four of this year’s recipients have also been honored as named scholars (*) – scholarships that are administered by The Council Foundation – Courtney Andersson, Assurex Arther P. Ashlock scholar, Julia Patras, Assurex Arther P. Ashlock Game Changer scholar, Allison Phillips, Franklin Wheeler Scholar, Mary Grace (MG) Browne, USI Insurance Scholar, and Molly Deal, Dave Oberkircher scholar.
