Grant to create Connecticut's first insurance, financial service degree program

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao visited Naugatuck Valley Community College Friday to announce a $2.7 million federal grant that will establish the state's first associate's degree program in insurance and financial services.

The President's High-Growth Job Training Initiative awarded the grant to the state Department of Economic and Community Development. The department is working with the state's community college system and The Workplace Inc., southwestern Connecticut's regional workforce development board, to develop the program.

The grant will create "IFS" University, a curriculum for the state's first associate's degree in insurance and financial services. "Right now we're in the planning phases," said Adrienne Parkmond, vice president of operations at The Workplace Inc., the grant's administrator and fiduciary.

Officials from community colleges and The Workplace Inc. are meeting with executives from Connecticut insurance and financial firms to gauge what the industry's current and future needs are in order to remain competitive, Parkmond said.

Capital Community College in Hartford likely will develop the program's insurance curriculum, while Norwalk Community College will develop the financial services curriculum. The associate's degree, however, will be available at all 12 of the state's community colleges, Parkmond said, adding it is too soon to tell when the program will be available.

Once established, the program will "serve as a model throughout Connecticut for developing the future insurance and financial sector workforce," Chao said in a statement. "Connecticut will need a tremendous number of skilled workers in the coming years."

The grant also will help at least 275 currently employed workers, and 125 displaced or unemployed workers, get additional training, she said.

U.S. Rep. Nancy Johnson, who joined Chao Friday in announcing the funding, said in a statement, "This grant will provide our students with an opportunity to cultivate the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed while simultaneously improving the industry's competitiveness in global markets."