Spencer Educational Foundation Awards Record $1 Million in Scholarships 

Spencer Educational Foundation Awards Record $1 Million in Scholarships 

Funding was provided to 125 Students across the Undergraduate, Graduate, and Post-Graduate Levels 

 

New York, NY (May 28, 2026) – Spencer Educational Foundation has reached a major milestone, awarding $1 million in scholarships to 125 outstanding students in 2026, representing 47 universities across North America. This record-setting investment reflects Spencer’s continued commitment to expanding opportunities for students pursuing careers in risk management and insurance. 

 

The merit-based scholarships support undergraduate students, full- and part-time master’s students, Ph.D. candidates, and Pre-Instructors of Practice across the United States and Canada as they prepare to enter and lead the future of the industry. 

 

“We could not have achieved this milestone without the steadfast support of our industry partners,” said Megan Miller, CEO of Spencer Educational Foundation. “Their investment is helping to elevate awareness of careers in risk management and insurance, as evidenced by the record number of more than 660 applications received this year.” 

 

In 2026, Spencer partnered with 42 donor organizations to administer their scholarship awards. The Foundation also dedicated funding to the Leslie Whittet Memorial Scholarship, honoring the legacy of the late Chief Marketing Officer of the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) and celebrating Spencer’s longstanding partnership with the organization. 

Thank you to our 2026 Named scholarship donor partners: 

AF Group 

Allied World Assurance Company Ltd. 

American Agricultural Insurance Company  

Angela Sabatino  

Aon 

Arch Insurance Group, Inc. 

AXA XL 

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance 

Brown and Brown 

Chubb 

CSAA 

Elizabeth M. Lisle 

FM 

Gabe Cossio 

Gallagher 

Hylant 

IAT Insurance Group 

Judy Chaipan and Robin Roeder 

Liberty Mutual Insurance 

Lockton Companies 

Marsh McLennan Agency Southeast 

Milliman 

Philadelphia CPCU Society Chapter 

Philadelphia Insurance Companies 

Property & Liability Resource Bureau (PLRB) 

Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) 

RIMS - Atlanta Chapter 

RIMS - Chicago Chapter 

RIMS - Connecticut Valley Chapter 

RIMS - Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter 

RIMS - Houston Chapter 

RIMS - New Jersey Chapter 

RIMS - New York Chapter 

RIMS - St. Louis Chapter 

Rosenberg & Parker 

Sedgwick  

Target Markets Program Administrators Association (TMPAA) 

Travelers 

Young Risk Professionals of Georgia 

Zurich Insurance Group 

 
Congratulations to our 2026 Spencer Scholarship award recipients: 

  • Gokul Achaththekoot, Arizona State University 

  • Elijah Adusi, University of Waterloo 

  • Nicholas Afanassiev, Temple University 

  • Allyson Afrank, Drake University 

  • Joshua Aitken, Saint Joseph's University 

  • Sadira Ali, Illinois State University 

  • Siegfried Anyomi, University of Iowa 

  • Paul Arauwou, Morgan State University 

  • Kooper Ashmore, East Carolina University 

  • Danielle Atkinson, Ferris State University 

  • Oluwatosin Babalola, Georgia State University 

  • Skye Balonis, Temple University 

  • Prapya Barman, Temple University 

  • Samit Bin Alam, St. John's University 

  • Kenneth Blekor, University of Massachusetts-Amherst 

  • Shaunte Boxill, St. John's University 

  • Matthew Bretz, Pennsylvania State University 

  • Trevor Buckeridge, University of Connecticut 

  • Jennifer Calandra, University of Houston-Downtown 

  • Kaylee Campbell, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Katherine Cerda, St. Mary's University 

  • Eleanor Chen, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor 

  • Miranda Chen, The University of Texas at Austin 

  • Kaysie Cheng, St. John's University 

  • Edward Chmiel, University of Connecticut 

  • Grace Cittadino, Illinois State University 

  • Brian Cohn, University of South Carolina-Columbia 

  • Brendan Colgan, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 

  • Elizabeth Colpe, Villanova University 

  • Jessica Cudzich, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 

  • Radhika Damle, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Parker Davis, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Nii Amoo Decardi-Nelson, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 

  • Rhoda Dennis, University of Waterloo 

  • Gail Dennis-White , Georgia State University 

  • Elle Dirck, University of Mississippi 

  • Amela Dishnica, University of Connecticut 

  • Charlton Dottin, Morgan State University 

  • Noah Dube, University of Connecticut 

  • Max Ellersick, University of Utah 

  • Peter Espinal, St. John's University 

  • Hamza Essaidi, University of Hawaii 

  • Caleb Eynon, The University of Alabama 

  • Alexander Gherardi, Georgia Institute of Technology 

  • Sarthak Gupta, Georgia State University 

  • Muhammad Rayyan Habib, DePauw University 

  • Mallory Hall, University of Georgia 

  • Stephanie Hayd, University of Wisconsin-Madison 

  • Chara Hinds, Morgan State University 

  • Emily Hopp, University of Wisconsin-Madison 

  • Aliyah Jordan, Georgia State University 

  • Stephanie Kandasammy, St. John's University 

  • Susan Kearney, Saint Joseph's University 

  • Hatatu Killeen, University of Wisconsin-Madison 

  • Kasyoki Kimeu, Georgia State University 

  • Brady King, Saint Joseph's University 

  • Ella Kintz , Ball State University 

  • Ruby Kodiah, Georgia State University 

  • Meah La Rocco, University of Mississippi 

  • Hannah LaMaster, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Minh Nguyet Le, DePauw University 

  • Thao Le, University of St. Thomas 

  • Zachary Li, New York University 

  • Givemore Makusha, The College of St. Scholastica  

  • Nathan Manthey, Illinois State University 

  • Isabella Martinez, St. Mary's University 

  • Roan Maye, Bentley University 

  • Rosario Medina Rodriguez, Fordham University 

  • Adam Messman, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Kathleen Miao, University of Toronto 

  • Aidan Moseley, Appalachian State University 

  • Luke Mostello, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

  • Charles Newsome , Butler University 

  • Sam Ng, University of Connecticut 

  • Nga Nguyen, DePauw University 

  • Thu Nguyen, Texas Christian University 

  • Mihn-Chau Nguyen, University of Waterloo 

  • Naomi Nwokoma, Temple University 

  • Matthew O'Connor, University of Connecticut 

  • Albert Ofoe, University of Massachusetts-Amherst 

  • Jeel Patel, Illinois State University 

  • Marek Pedziwater, Illinois State University 

  • Brady Quinn, Ball State University 

  • Carissa Reebel, University of South Carolina-Columbia 

  • Cristina Salas, Georgia State University 

  • Rainey Sharrow, Florida State University 

  • Mason Smith, University of Central Arkansas 

  • Zane Smith, St. John's University 

  • Mary Snyder, Le Moyne College 

  • Julian Solomon, Florida State University 

  • Samantha Staromana, St. John's University 

  • Anish Subedi, Georgia State University 

  • Isha Tachhekar, St. John's University 

  • Dieter Treneman, Lawrence University 

  • Lily Van Elderen, St. John's University 

  • Angelina Vereshchagina, St. John's University 

  • Chang Wang, Temple University 

  • Vera Wang, University of Southern California 

  • Tyler Welch, University of Wisconsin-Madison  

  • Maxwell Wozniak, St. John's University 

  • Maame Ama Yeboa-Debrah, Georgia State University 

  • Woongchae Yoo, Georgia State University 

  • Samantha Zelling, Temple University 

  • Veronica Zieba, Illinois State University  

For more information about Spencer’s scholarship program, please visit www.spencered.org/scholarships.  

About the Spencer Educational Foundation: 

The Spencer Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to fostering the education and professional development of risk management and insurance students. Since its establishment in 1979, the foundation has been helping students succeed by providing scholarships, grants, and internships to talented individuals pursuing careers in these fields. To learn more about the Spencer Educational Foundation and its programs, please visit www.spencered.org. 

Keyonna Hill
Outreach Coordinator
Spencer Educational Foundation
T: +1-212-655-6060
E: keyonna@spencered.org