If there's any doubt about the success of the Spencer Educational Foundation — now with assets of $4 million, and awarding hundreds of scholarships over the years — just ask the program's prime beneficiaries, the students.

For Keone Wilkie, a junior at St. John's University, having a Spencer scholarship means he can focus on his studies without the added pressure of holding a job.

“This has taken the financial burden off me and my parents,” said Mr. Wilkie, who is studying actuarial sciences as one of 52 scholarship beneficiaries in 2006. “The program has helped, keeping me on track and staying in school–getting the education necessary to make me more marketable.”

The experience has helped him to develop both academically and professionally, he said.

An added benefit of the program, he noted, is membership in the Risk and Insurance Management Society, which is affiliated with Spencer. He was able to attend last year's RIMS conference in Hawaii, and will also have access to a mentor through the association.

Although he found the Honolulu gathering to be “an unbelievable experience, and valuable,” he won't be able to attend this year's conference in New Orleans because it conflicts with exams.

Another scholarship recipient is James Hilliard, a full-time Ph.D. candidate at the University of Connecticut who has been granted scholarships for three years and hopes to qualify for another. The scholarship, he said, “helped me change my career and go into teaching and research.”

He is teaching insurance classes at the University of Connecticut and will teach full time once he completes the program. He also is working on his dissertation–on the probe by New York's attorney general (now governor), Elliot Spitzer, into bid-rigging and contingency fee abuse by top brokers and insurers, as well as its effects on the insurance industry.

“Without the scholarship, I could do this, but I would be in debt,” he said. To qualify for the scholarship, Mr. Hilliard said he compiled a detailed application. Part of the qualification was a background in the insurance industry and risk management, “which I have,” he said, citing his work with an underwriter in his native country of Trinidad.

Jeanne H. Braun, executive vice president of Hospitals and Special Programs Physicians' Reciprocal Insurers in Lake Success, N.Y., who chairs the Spencer Foundation, has seen the organization mature during the past year.

“Last year we were trying to get the word out,” she said, noting that the addition of Tom Tizzio, senior advisor at AIG, as honorary fundraising chairman since September, has helped “open doors.”

The emphasis this year has been to define Spencer within the risk management community. “We have reached out to the RIMS chapters and will be honoring a number of them–which we haven't done before–for their generosity,” Ms. Braun noted. “RIMS chapters are starting to realize that Spencer is a very important part of the future in terms of having breadth and depth of talent coming behind us.”

In fact, several new scholarships have been added. RIMS chapters in New York Atlanta and Dallas gave $100,000 each; and Utah just pledged $30,000. Insurance company ACE pledged $100,000 as well, “and we expect others to follow,” she added.

An added benefit to supporting Spencer is that risk managers also could be candidates for scholarships, should they opt to attend school at the masters level.

“They're all eligible for Spencer money,” she said. “They also can volunteer to mentor or speak as a risk manager in residence at a university, to encourage others through their own practical experience.”

To get the word out and attract applicants, scholarship requirements for eligibility have been opened up, doubling submissions over the last year from students across the country. “The number was about 65, and now we have more than 130 applications,” she said.

Scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic excellence at the undergraduate and masters levels, and to pre-dissertation Ph.D.s, Spencer said. The average scholarship ranges from $3,500 to $5,000.

The foundation was established by the Atlanta RIMS chapter in 1979 to honor the late Robert S. Spencer, RIMS president in 1977-78. He believed in risk management education and established the RIMS Student Involvement Program, later renamed the Anita Benedetti Student Involvement Program, according to Spencer.

Colleges are doing a better job of getting the word out, “and we're trying to reach out to a broader base of students,” Ms. Braun said. “Our [grade point] average is 3.0 now–more consistent with other programs.”

She said Spencer also is strengthening ties with the American Risk and Insurance Association, to which many college professors belong. Spencer is linking its criteria with the ARIA Web site and has an ARIA member on its board–Rob Hoyt from the University of Georgia.

“We're offering more scholarships. However, we have to be cautious that we raise enough money to give out the money,” Ms. Braun added. “There was concern that we were giving it out at a faster rate than we were raising it, so the board has spent time working to replenish that.”

Mr. Hilliard emphasized the positive nature of his experience. “I really feel like I've become part of a family–the Spencer family–because they've invested so much in me and my efforts going through this process,” he said.

“Working with the staff and board has been a delightful experience, and my connections with the members of the board may very well lead to a job, so I can't say enough good about Spencer,” he added.

This article originally appeared in The National Underwriter P&C. For the complete article, please click here.

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