ALEXANDRIA, Virginia, July 2, 2015 – InVEST, the insurance industry’s premier classroom to career education program, has awarded $77,000 in scholarships to 88 students pursuing insurance-related degrees. The program is a key incentive in attracting new talent to the insurance industry.

 

“InVEST congratulates the 88 students representing 32 high schools, colleges and universities in 14 states and Washington, D.C., who earned scholarships this year,” says Robert G. Slocum, CPCU, CIC, InVEST board chair and president of The Slocum Agency, Inc., an independent agency in Warwick, Rhode Island. “InVEST develops future industry professionals by teaching high school and college students about insurance, risk management and financial services. As a result, students from more than 650 InVEST programs across the country are equipped with knowledge to help them pursue careers in an agency, company or other insurance industry organization.”

 

InVEST contributes to the education and development of future insurance professionals through academic programs and scholarships. In high schools, the program offers students a business curriculum which teaches them about the dynamics of insurance agencies and companies. At the college level, the program develops students’ risk management and financial analysis skills. Along with direct contributions, scholarships are funded through proceeds generated by the InVEST Silent and Live auctions held in conjunction with the Independent Insurance Agents & Broker’s (IIABA or the Big “I”) Legislative Conference.

 

“A successful InVEST program is critical to the future of the independent agency system, to the insurance industry as a whole and to the financial literacy of our young people,” says Robert Rusbuldt, Big “I” president & CEO. “Many are concerned that the average age of an insurance professional is around 54 and as baby boomers continue retiring, the InVEST program has the potential to replenish our workforce and to produce the next generation of industry professionals and leaders.”
 
This year’s scholarship winners represent 32 schools and hail from Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.

 

$3,000 Bob Betters Scholarship Winners:
• Brooke Coughlin, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Jessica England, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida

 

$2,000 Scholarship Winners:
• Rebecca Cleppe, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Claire Collins, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Quinn Christian Cotilla, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Catherine De Freitas, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Ayme Ibarra, Manatee High School, Bradenton, Florida
• Kalie Rauch, Dryden High School, Dryden, New York
• Zachary Shuman, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Matthew Sullivan, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Jeremy Tromer, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Shawn Varughese, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Emilio Ycaza, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida

 

$1,500 Scholarship Winner:
• Nellie Parks, Grossmont Community College, El Cajon, California
           
$1,000 Scholarship Award Winners:
• Sawmon Abossedgh, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Elisabeth Bassini, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Dalton Wendell Burk, Dryden High School, Dryden, New York
• Sarah Elizabeth Fuss, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Khalil Garcia, Palmetto High School, Palmetto, Florida
• Meera Ghetia, Deep Run High School, Glen Allen, Virginia
• Kenan Ghibih, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Megan Zenovia Gibson, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Lucy Gomez, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Alexandra Raye Griffin, Dryden High School, Dryden, New York
• Wesley Harper, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Stephanie McCann, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Michael McGee, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Devin P. Miller, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Bryan Wesley Mills, Van Wert High School, Van Wert, Ohio
• Chantelle Mnayarji, Lake Brantley High School, Altamonte Springs, Florida
• Joyce Carolyn Nowlin, Deep Run High School, Glen Allen, Virginia
• Tyler Sheradsky, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
• Jeffrey Matthew Steinhoff, McGraw Central High School, McGraw, New York
• Tiffany Travis, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Marissa Veilleux, Newington High School, Newington, Connecticut

 

$500 Scholarship Award Winners:
• Andres Alvarez, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
• Lucy Baez, Coral Gables High School, Miami, Florida
• Allan Bekerman, Cooper City High School, Cooper City, Florida
• Makiah Coley, Bloomfield High School, Bloomfield, Connecticut
• Danielle Columbus, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
• QuinDarrius Culbreth, BEST Academy High School, Atlanta, Georgia
• Parker Shaw Del Medico, Cardinal Mooney High School, Sarasota, Florida
• Libby Feldman, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Samantha Galloway, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Jeffrey Graham, Pinkerton Academy, Derry, New Hampshire
• Shannon Greenwald, Manatee High School, Bradenton, Florida
• Andrew James Haddad, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Lauren Hausman, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Katie Heard, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Rosemary Herbst, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Cortez James, BEST Academy High School, Atlanta, Georgia
• Chelsey Jordan, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Jonathan Michael Juchtman, Cooper City High School, Cooper City, Florida
• Maria Kara, Deep Run High School, Glen Allen, Virginia
• Nathan Keen, Manatee High School, Bradenton, Florida
• Ryan Kilijanski, West Seneca West Senior High School, West Seneca, New York
• Gabrielle LaRosa, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Victor Hyunjae Lee, Zachary High School, Zachary, Louisiana
• Timothy Madden, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Liam Mass, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Rachel Mentzer, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Coral Miller, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Tyson Muniz, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Dora Muratovic, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Johnluke Joseph Nassar, Joseph P. Keefe Technical School, Framingham, Massachusetts
• Clarissa Ott, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Shelby S. Paulino, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Lindsay Perrin, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Justin Petrelli, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Isaac D. Pierce, Lake Region Vocational Center, Naples, Maine
• Cianna Piercey, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Ariana Plaza, Dr. Phillips High School, Orlando, Florida
• Michelle Price, Lake Brantley High School, Altamonte Springs, Florida
• Emilee Puccio, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Gabrielle Sarah Reiff, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Genevieve Rexford, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Parker Addison Rhoads, St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, Florida
• Angel Rivera Chavez, Gaithersburg High School, Gaithersburg, Maryland
• Dania Salazar, East Hartford High School, East Hartford, Connecticut
• Emily Anne Scoma, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, New York
• Loren R. Smalley, III, Charlotte High School, Charlotte, Michigan
• Soukitar Soundara, University of Connecticut, Mansfield, Connecticut
• Grant Tarvin, Cabot High School, Cabot, Arkansas
• Tilley Elizabeth Van Dyke, William R. Boone High School, Orlando, Florida
• Zackary Weiss, Marjory Stoneman, Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
• Alexandra Leigh Zehr, Dryden High School, Dryden, New York

 

$500 Classroom to Career Scholars:
• Monique Lucas, Roosevelt Senior High School, Washington, D.C.
• Stacey Porter, Roosevelt Senior High School, Washington, D.C.

 

InVEST awarded two Bob Betters Memorial Scholarships and two Classroom to Career Scholarships.

 

The Bob Betters Scholarship was established in 2011. The scholarship awards the highest dollar amount; this year’s award is $3,000. Bob Betters of Watson Insurance Agency in Gastonia, North Carolina, passed away in February 2011, after battling brain cancer. Betters, who was appointed to the InVEST board of directors in 2009, served as the InVEST state champion for North Carolina. The InVEST board has agreed to award the top scholarships for five years to honor his commitment to the InVEST program. 

 

The Classroom to Career was developed for students who would like to enter the insurance industry immediately after graduating from InVEST. These students are eligible for a $500 reimbursement for licensing or designation expenses.

This year, scholarship hopefuls from across the country submitted essays describing the influence and benefits of InVEST on their educational plans. The quality of the essay, combined with the applicant’s grade-point average and extracurricular activities, were factors in selecting the recipients. Scholarship checks are mailed directly to the institute of higher learning that each student is attending and will be used exclusively for educational expenses. 
 
As a 501(c)(3) educational trust, InVEST benefits from the support of numerous insurance organizations, hundreds of agencies, brokers and volunteers. The program provides the insurance industry with motivated, talented and intelligent professionals through a support structure of state associations, board members, national staff, teachers and the many industry professionals who work in the field as classroom liaisons.

 

 

 

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