Wholesale and specialty insurers are targeting future workforce gaps through a new education initiative linking InvestSM and the Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association (WSIA) during Insurance Careers Month. InvestSM is a national 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit administered by the Big “I” that provides insurance and risk management education to high school and community college students across the US.
The organizations said the collaboration is intended to increase student awareness of insurance career pathways, with specific attention to wholesale and specialty lines. The timing coincides with Insurance Careers Month, an industrywide effort focused on career awareness and recruitment.
The new chapter introduces surplus lines insurance and its role in covering emerging, unique and high-risk exposures that fall outside the standard insurance market. According to InvestSM, the materials explain how surplus lines coverage supports real-world activities, outline regulatory frameworks governing the market and describe factors behind the segment’s continued growth within the US insurance system.
Students engage with the content through real-life examples, career profiles and interactive learning elements delivered through Invest’s learning management system. The platform provides free digital resources for educators, including lesson plans, presentations and activities designed to support classroom instruction while introducing insurance fundamentals and risk management concepts.
“WSIA is proud to partner with Invest in building greater awareness of the wholesale and specialty market,” said Vanessa Sims, director, talent and culture, at WSIA. “This collaboration reflects our shared belief that early education and engagement are key to inspiring students and preparing them for long-term success in the industry.”
The partnership also includes a leadership component. Ruth Crocker, senior manager of talent outreach and strategic relationships at WSIA, has joined the Invest board of directors in partnership with WSIA’s Talent Engagement Foundation.
“We’re honored to welcome Ruth Crocker and the WSIA team to the Invest board,” said Whitnee Dillard, executive director of Invest. “WSIA’s leadership in developing talent across the wholesale and specialty market complements Invest’s mission to connect students with rewarding careers across all sectors of the insurance industry.”
Crocker said the collaboration focuses on early exposure to insurance careers. “We’re excited to collaborate with Invest to highlight the variety of rewarding career opportunities within insurance and specialty lines,” she said. “Our goal is to ensure students are exposed to these opportunities early, so they can make informed and empowered decisions about their future. This collaboration helps us open doors and spark curiosity that can shape lifelong careers.”
WSIA joins other insurance companies and organizations partnering with InvestSM, including APCIA, Applied Systems, Chubb Insurance, CNA, Dryden Mutual, Grange Insurance, Hanover Insurance, HSB, Munich Re, the Big “I,” The Institutes, Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance, National General, an Allstate Company, Progressive Insurance, Selective Insurance, Travelers Insurance, Westfield and Vertafore.
