Insurance Component Added To School Program

Good morning.

I am pleased to provide an update on the Department of Education’s Career Pathways Programme and formally introduce a new insurance component in association with the Bermuda Insurance Institute.

The Career Pathways Programmme was launched during the 2012-2013 academic school year in Bermuda’s two public senior schools – The Berkeley Institute and CedarBridge Academy.

The programme provides S3 and S4 senior school students with the opportunity to develop academic, technical and work-place skills in preparation for life beyond the classroom. There are five different areas of exploration within the programme:

• college preparatory courses,
• applied technology,
• business and hospitality,
• health and human services, and
• athletics, arts and communication

The goals of the programme are to provide learning opportunities through real-world work experiences; to provide students with advanced college preparatory courses; and to foster the development of professionalism, accountability, interpersonal communication and networking skills.

Presently within Career Pathways, there are four certification programmes. They include the Nurses Aid Certification managed by Bermuda College; an automotive certification through the National Training Board via Noble Auto; the City & Guilds Employability Skills course managed by Bermuda College; and most recently, the Bermuda Insurance Institute’s General Insurance Certification.

Since January, the Bermuda Insurance Institute has recruited seven students from both Berkeley Institute and CedarBridge Academy to enroll in the General Insurance Certification Programme. Students who successfully complete this certification will achieve an Associate in General Insurance (AINS) designation by the time they graduate from senior school in June 2015.

Bermuda Insurance Institute CEO, Dr. Dawnnelle Walker, and members of the Institute have developed a rigorous three-tiered programme. Initially, the students are involved in a six-week segment that introduces them to the insurance industry.

In the second, five-week tier of the certification programme, which they have almost completed, they have worked with industry partners. During the third tier, students will prepare to sit exams for the general insurance certification. The three areas of concentrated study are commercial, property and personal insurance.

We are grateful to the seven insurance-industry partners who are working with our students in the programme. They are Abby Clifford from BF&M; Damien Pitcher from Freisenbruch Meyer; Crystal Clay from ACE; Shirley Fountain from Endurance; Gail Miller from Oil Insurance; Brenda Tatem from Ariel Re; and Richard Winchell from ABIC.

Our industry partners are not only contributing their time and experience to assist students in preparing for the insurance exams, but they are also underwriting the cost of the exams – with no expense to parents or the Department of Education.

I should also note that overall, Career Pathways has almost 50 industry partners involved, including eight Government Ministries. There are approximately 259 students who are participating in a work or career-related experience.
Since January, the students have been engaged in a twelve-week school/career work placement exercise.

During their experience, they are supervised by a trainer or mentor. Upon completion, the students are evaluated by their mentors at the workplace site, using criteria developed by the Department of Education, school leaders and industry partners. Students who successfully complete the work-placement experience receive one credit, which contributes toward their graduation.

I am pleased to report that Career Pathways has been well received, and we have a number of students who have requested to continue in their senior year. I would like to thank Dr. Radell Tankard, who has developed and led Career Pathways since its inception.

Finally, I wish to thank all of our industry partners for their commitment to our students and their assistance in preparing them for life beyond the classroom.

Read More About