A foundational insurance course is to be offered for a third year starting Monday through the Bermuda College, in partnership with the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers and New York’s St John’s University.

Abir’s president and CEO John Huff commented: “Abir member companies remain committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce as we continue our work in insuring clients around the world against natural and man-made catastrophe, cyber and specialty risks. By providing open access to foundational insurance knowledge, we hope to attract future leaders from all backgrounds, in line with our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.”

Phyllis Curtis-Tweed, vice president of Academic and Student Affairs at Bermuda College, said: “We are absolutely thrilled with the ongoing development of this partnership, which is on target with our established goals. We have been able to award scholarships and increase internships for our students.”

Dr Curtis-Tweed noted: “In this third year of the course, we are mindful of how much the Abir partnership has contributed to strengthening and expanding the relationship between the college and the insurance/reinsurance industry.”

Mark Browne, faculty chair of the Greenberg School of Risk Management at St John’s University, said: “St John’s University’s Greenberg School of Risk Management is once again pleased to partner with Abir and Bermuda College to further the education of Bermudians to be the future leaders of Bermuda’s international insurance and reinsurance sector. This year we have been pleased to welcome two promising, young Bermudians, Mr Richardson and Mr Simas, into the programme.”

Kallan Richardson, the Abir/Arch Scholar, and Miguel Simas, the Abir/RenaissanceRe Scholar, both 2022 graduates of Bermuda College, were named the first Abir Scholars in July 2022.

The substantial awards will cover their tuition for two years at the Maurice R. Greenberg School of Risk Management Insurance and Actuarial Science at St John's University in New York. Both just completed their first semester in December.

“The special topics course presented me with a wealth of information about the re/insurance industry. Being able to hear from insurance professionals high in their field was incredible, as well as being informed of different paths into the industry for students,” said Mr Simas.

The first session of the lecture series will feature a round table on international business in Bermuda, featuring David Burt, the Premier, and Minister of Finance; Pina Albo, chair of Abir and chief executive officer of Hamilton Insurance Group, Ltd.; and course facilitator Craig Simmons, Bermudian economist and senior lecturer at Bermuda College.

Mr Simmons will introduce the weekly sessions and facilitate questions to the guest lecturers. “Where else can you find a course that is launched by a head of state, taught by fifteen different C-suite executives and three professors from a premier risk management university?” he said. “If you are thinking about a career in reinsurance, then you might want to register.”

The lecture series is also open to members of the community who wish to learn more about Bermuda’s re/insurance industry, at no cost.

In 2021, Abir member companies employed 1,427 full-time staff in Bermuda, of which nearly 70 per cent were Bermudians, spouses of Bermudians, or permanent resident certificate holders.

Further training and development of a strong local workforce in Bermuda is a priority for Abir members, who provided educational scholarships, internships, graduate training programmes, tuition reimbursement and leadership training.

The 14-week course begins Monday, delivered online via Zoom.

To attend individual lectures, e-mail CFS@college.bm

Course Registration: www.college.bm