UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS BRANDING
IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT DONATIONS OF MONEY— IT VERY MUCH INCLUDES DONATIONS OF TIME, PARTICIPATION, AND KNOWLEDGE-SHARING.
THE ROAD AHEAD
As noted, the initial Risk Leadership Initiative sought to advance St. Thomas toward the development of an organizing umbrella under which more effective coordination, marketing / branding, and delivery of existing risk-related activity might occur. Funded by philanthropic dollars, these efforts have had their intended effects. As a visible symbol of the university’ s commitment to the business community, the Minnesota Insurance Hall of Fame was launched in fall 2024. The banquet and award ceremony were attended by nearly 300 industry leaders and were judged to be an immensely successful introduction of a much-needed effort to promote and recognize the industry and its many key leaders. The next banquet and ceremony are already in the planning stages for fall 2025.
The most pressing building-block efforts at present include the following:
• Continued fundraising to hire a permanent director for the Center and support student scholarships
• Further expansion of courses( and enrollment) for the Undergraduate Certificate in Risk Management and Insurance. For example, a new healthcare / health insurance course is in the early planning phase, which would join existing courses in risk management, property and casualty insurance, life insurance, financial planning, and advanced topics.
• Research initiatives have expanded dramatically in recent years. As just one example, St. Thomas is participating in an ambitious international project to better understand risk issues in the Arctic and Scandinavian region.
• For many years, St. Thomas has offered a global insurance course in London, which presents unique opportunities for students to understand the industry’ s international dimensions. Reviews are underway to expand this area of activity, and happily, local businesses such as Travelers and Holborn have been great supporters of this particular program.
• Community outreach activities( for high school students and the business community in general) have also been under discussion.
GETTING INVOLVED
Individuals and organizations interested in supporting and participating in the Center should understand the business case on which the Center idea has been developed:
1. There are very few academic institutions in the region providing the wide-ranging and structured programming in risk management, actuarial science, and insurance that exists at St. Thomas.
2. The Twin Cities business community has a large and diverse insurance sector.
3. The insurance industry( globally, but also locally) faces an enormous human resources crisis. Simply put, the industry is finding it difficult to attract bright and talented young people.
4. St. Thomas does have numerous unor under-exploited contacts in the industry via its alumni network.
5. In recent years, industry representatives have approached the university( often unbidden) to request the development of programming that would address the human resources crisis.
6. The insurance industry faces several other challenges, notably succession planning at the top levels of organizations and general longterm professional development( including leadership development) programming.
Put in its most straightforward terms, there is an unusual convergence of three factors: 1) UST presently has a strategic focus on“ town and gown” connectivity... simply put, it intends to focus on being a greater( and more impactful) participant in the Twin Cities / Minnesota communities; 2) there is no serious academic competition for wide-ranging risk-related education and research actively underway; and 3) the insurance industry faces several challenges tied to insurance education and professional development. Let it also be noted that the local insurance industry is sizable and has financial resources likely to be sufficient to support an initiative such as the one proposed in this document. +
Looking for more information? Interested in learning more about supporting this effort? Contact:
DANIEL D. RILEY Executive Fellow
Center of Risk Management & Insurance
University of St. Thomas Email: Rile6180 @ stthomas. edu Mobile: 1( 612) 240-8266
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