New scholarship opportunity launched for Black insurance students

Lloyd’s of London in Canada, Humber Polytechnic, and the Canadian Association of Black Insurance Professionals (CABIP) have partnered to launch a scholarship opportunity for Black insurance students.

The goal is to promote diversity and address a talent shortage in the industry, by supporting students in their goal to become property and casualty insurance professionals.

The new Lloyd’s Inclusive Futures Scholarship provides financial support to Black students enrolled in Humber’s Insurance Management-Property and Casualty program. Valued at $28,050 over five years, the scholarship will be awarded annually beginning in Winter 2026.

“Attracting and retaining the best talent is absolutely critical to ensuring Lloyd’s remains the world’s preeminent marketplace for risk,” says Marc Lipman, president of Lloyd’s Americas and attorney in fact in Canada for Lloyd’s Underwriters. “This commitment includes building a more inclusive and diverse global marketplace — one that reflects the global markets we support and work in.
 
“That talent comes from a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences. Yet, visible minorities and people from diverse ethnicities remain underrepresented in London and, frankly, across the insurance industry as a whole. That’s why we turned to CABIP co-founder and board chair Dionne Bowers in late 2023 for her insight and guidance.”

Bowers connected Lloyd’s with John McNeil, program coordinator of the Insurance Management Program at Humber Polytechnic‘s Longo Faculty of Business. McNeil tells CU he’s seen first-hand the value of scholarships in supporting students in their academic careers.

“We had a student in the past who took advantage of an equity-based scholarship, and it was a complete game-changer for him,” he tells CU. “He was about to quit in second semester. He was a Black student, and I remember his Mom’s yoga studio had to shut down during COVID. His parents couldn’t pay for his education.

“He graduated because of the scholarship he had access to. He wouldn’t be in the industry today, after all his hard work, if he didn’t have access to the scholarship.

“He is now thriving in the industry. I saw a broker sent him a shout-out on LinkedIn the other day. What’s amazing about this industry is how it rallies to help support and attract new talent.”

Scholarships specifically designed for insurance programs are more likely to keep talent in the P&C industry, McNeil adds.

“Statistics over the years show the effect of scholarships on retention,” he adds. “When a student goes through an insurance program, they tend to stick in the industry.”

Related: A new resource for Canada’s Black insurance professionals

Bowers tells CU she has done a lot of outreach in inner city schools. It’s important to recognize insurance isn’t a career path to which a lot of young people aspire, she says. It’s key to attend schools and talk to students, even as young as 14, to present insurance as a viable career option.

“I had one young student actually tell me that she wanted to become an astronaut,” Bowers recalls. “And I said, ‘Okay, I love that. I’ve never met anyone like that. And what’s your fallback plan?’

“I’m always about the fallback plan, if you don’t become an astronaut, right? What is that?”

To achieve her dream, the student told Bowers she planned to take engineering classes. “And I told her, ‘Great, keep insurance in mind, because engineering can open up a number of [opportunities], especially in [the P&C insurance] industry,’” Bowers replied.

Bowers further recalls speaking to 53 students in Philadelphia who were hand-picked to be part of the HBCU (Historically Black Colleges & Universities) program. The initiative helps students by means of career development, mentorship, funding, and skill-building, focusing on economic empowerment, leadership, and closing opportunity gaps for Black graduates in professional fields.

Why innovative customer experience will define the future of personal auto insurance Image

Insights Paid Content

Why innovative customer experience will define the future of personal auto insurance

Technology is helping insurers reimagine how they support personal auto customers — and it starts the moment a collision is reported, say experts at Accident Support Services International.

By 

Sponsor Image

When Bowers asked students in the program about their majors, a few mentioned focusing on psychology or kinesiology. Bowers noted these types of programs teach skills relevant to those working in the auto insurance field.

The key “is to make sure we’re getting some face time with these students and making sure we’re communicating [insurance opportunities] to them,” Bowers says. “To John’s point, to the students who are struggling financially, we say there are opportunities for you. I think the [Lloyd’s] scholarship will really support that.”

Another ancillary benefit of scholarships is that students in the industry who receive them may be inclined to promote the P&C industry as a result. For example, when the industry publicizes its scholarship funding and the students who take advantage of them, it promotes the industry’s reputation and further cements its recruitment efforts.

“Students are publicly grateful and thanking the industry,” Bowers observes. “It’s great optics for the industry to show their support behind the students…[and] it’s actually a great recruitment tool.”

David Gambrill

David has twice served as Canadian Underwriter’s senior editor, both from 2005 to 2012, and again from 2017 to the present.