AUSTIN — More than two dozen insurance and risk management students at six Texas universities recently were awarded scholarships by the Insurance Council of Texas Education Foundation.
The foundation’s awards total $32,000, divided between 27 students at Huston-Tillotson University, Texas Southern University, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, the University of Texas at San Antonio, the University of Houston Downtown and the University of Houston Main, according to a news release.
Tony Gonzalez, president of the foundation, said this year’s scholarship recipients would be an asset to the insurance industry.
“Many of these students have a strong background in insurance and risk management and the industry is always looking for new talented people,” Gonzalez said in the release. “The industry is facing a significant number of retirements in the next few years and it is critical that we have a strong group of incoming young people who can be part of such an important industry.”
The ICT is the largest state insurance trade association in the U.S., made up of about 500 property and casualty insurers writing business in Texas. The education program started in 2002 to encourage more students to consider a career in the property and casualty industry, as well as to develop the next generation of insurance professionals. Since it began, the foundation has awarded more than $800,000 to 422 students at 12 Texas schools.
The recipients were invited to ICT’s 24th Annual Mid-Year Symposium on July 14 in Austin. They’ll get a two-hour tour of the Texas Department of Insurance and can participate in a speed interview and networking session where they will meet with various company representatives. The symposium includes about 300 insurance industry leaders, who will hear an update on the Texas marketplace and future trends impacting the insurance business.
The event raises money for the Education Foundation — 100 percent of the corporate sponsorships, as well as company and individual donations, go toward scholarships and academic funding.
Scholarship recipients include: Erica Ramos, DeNae Robbins, Ashlynn Payne and Barney Mutumha at Huston-Tillotson under Professor Herman Askew; Tiffany Tyler and Thuy Nguyen at Texas Southern University under Zahid Iqbal; Parker Gallegos, Jose Nunez, Valeria Fasci, Jessica Aza and April Barron at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley under Professors Steven Lovell and Terrance Martin; Levi Moreno, Jeff Becker, Danielle Fitzpatrick, Jaime Farji and Matthew Mack at the University of Texas at San Antonio under Professor Ron Sweet; Leslie Davila, Tove Halvorsen, Christopher Cote, Renat Tatarin and Benjamin Biskynis at the University of Houston Main under Professor Mack Rogers; and Ayla Benavides, Calee Meurer, Julie Braun, Malinda Beckham, Rebecca Demby, Sheryl Pevy, Treston Cook and Zoraida Alviso at the University of Houston Downtown under Wendall Braniff.
For more information, visit www.insurancecouncil.org.