From a Bulldog to a Telescope: Student-Run Insurance Agency on Its Way
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA unique experiential learning program officially launches Tuesday at Butler University. MJ Student-Run Insurance Co. Ltd. aims to train students to enter a field currently facing a worker shortage. Davey Risk Management and Insurance Program Director Zach Finn, who serves as supervisor for the student-run program, says the company might one day expand to cover off-campus properties and has the potential to eventually be profitable. The company currently insures properties including the school’s live mascot, Trip the bulldog, as well as books, art and the telescope at Holcomb Observatory and Planetarium.
During a recent interview on Inside INdiana Business Television, Finn said students will receive real-world experience in an in-demand field. "Everybody talks about the fact that there could be 500,000 job openings in the insurance industry, but what you really don’t hear about is the supply-side problem," Finn said. "There are perhaps 1,900 accounting programs in the United States — if you, say, go to the Collegeboard website where students will often look for majors — maybe 1,000 finance programs, maybe 82 insurance and risk management programs, 3,800 graduates for a multi-trillion-dollar industry. To me, that’s a problem that needs addressed."
MJ Student-Run Insurance Co. is licensed by Bermuda Monetary Authority and can pay out a maximum of up to $250,000 in losses per year. It is backed by global insurance broker Aon and KPMG will serve as auditor.
Finn was joined on Inside INdiana Business Television by Director of External Relations Michael Kaltenmark, who said the company is a selling point for faculty, staff and students. "It’s another feather in our cap," he said. "We like to think of ourselves as unique in the highly-saturated landscape that higher education is and this is just another point to proves that. We are truly unique, we are offering something that other places aren’t."
The company is a "captive" venture, which means premiums are reinvested into loss control.
You can connect to more details about the student-run company by clicking here.