'Transformational’ investment names the Florida Surplus Lines Center for Insurance Excellence

Key players in the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office's growing partnership with the Wertheim College include, from left, Brad Karl, chair of the Department of Risk Management/Insurance, Real Estate and Legal Studies; Mark Shealy, CEO and executive director of FSLSO; Florida Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky; and Chuck Nyce, Florida Surplus Lines Insurance Director.

Photo by Kallen M. Lunt; click or tap to enlarge

Further strengthening its extraordinary record of commitment to risk management and insurance research and education at Florida State University, the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office (FSLSO) has announced a significant investment to name and endow the Florida Surplus Lines Center for Insurance Excellence in the Herbert Wertheim College of Business.

Wertheim College officials lauded the endowment as “transformational.”

The philanthropic investment, which follows a recent major investment to name the center’s directorship and a stream of previous contributions to the college, will expand opportunities for Wertheim College faculty members to conduct objective, rigorous research that empowers regulators, legislators and industry participants to make informed decisions about key insurance issues.

The Florida Surplus Lines Center for Insurance Excellence will work in seamless alignment with the No. 3-ranked Dr. William T. Hold/The Alliance’s Program in Risk Management and Insurance, with the Hold/Alliance’s program serving as the distinguished academic brand and the Florida Surplus Lines Center serving as the applied-research and industry-engagement engine. Together, and working closely with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR), they will synergistically elevate FSU and the Wertheim College as the state’s focal point for risk management and insurance education and research.

“This investment reaffirms our belief in the Wertheim College’s students, faculty members and administrators, and the valuable contributions of its risk management and insurance education and research,” said Mark Shealy, FSLSO’s executive director, who graduated from FSU with a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1991 before embarking on a career in the insurance industry. “Our continued support, including this endowment, reflects our commitment to strengthening both the surplus lines industry and the broader insurance marketplace by investing in the education, research and talent that will shape the future.”

Mike Yaworsky, commissioner of the OIR, which helps oversee FSLSO, hailed the “outstanding” investment for its promise to “further amplify the Office of Insurance Regulation’s strong partnership with Florida State University.”

“It has been a goal for many years to see the OIR and FSU solidify and improve research efforts together,” Yaworsky added. “Florida has considerable and unique insurance risk, and this partnership will truly advance meaningful data-driven research. I am grateful for this investment and excited to see the significant outcomes of this collaboration.”  

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