On July 13, Insurance Management Program Director Teresa Chan and Lecturer Ken Radigan had the privilege of engaging in thoughtful conversation with the high school and college-bound scholar-interns of the Boys Hope Girls Hope and Insurance Federation of New York, Inc. insurance summer internship program.
The interns focused on the Business of Dealing with Disasters after having learned about property and casualty, as well as life insurance, earlier in their orientation. Lecturer Radigan provided a few hours of lecture, video and interactive activities to help the students understand the premise behind the insurance business model, how insurers anticipate and price for catastrophic exposures, and the importance of capital to help avoid default. The scholar-interns, who have a variety of interests and who want to pursue careers in engineering, computer science, writing, real estate, finance/investments, wealth management and forensic science, demonstrated a deep sense of curiosity about insurance, a subject to which they have had limited exposure. During the next four weeks of their internship, the scholar-interns will be working in the offices of several insurance partners of BHGH and IFNY, and learning more about different lines of business.
One big takeaway from the conversation for Chan is that there is a huge opportunity to enrich the minds of young adults who are eager to learn and who will see a future that we may not be able to see. “There is an enormous pool of talent beyond the insurance industry being nurtured, with whom we have to find a way to connect. Programs like the ones run by Boys Hope Girls Hope with IFNY are a vital step in the process,” Chan added.
As described by Excess Line Association of New York (ELANY), who hosted the orientation in their downtown offices, "the interns gained a deep appreciation as to why individuals and businesses rely on insurance as a powerful financial tool and come to understand the value that insurance provides to society. They also gained a clearer understanding of how the insurance industry operates, why it is needed, and how it will continue to evolve to meet the risk demands of the future."
