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The Kilpatrick Center of Insurance & Financial Services
The
Consortium is in the process of raising funds for the development of the
Kilpatrick Center. The objective of the Center
is to establish a world-class professional executive center for insurance, financial,
and other business services. The Center will join the local, state, and national
economic development agencies in providing an attractive and broad source of professional
education to all types of professional industries through its provision of extensive
research, consultant services and executive training facilities. It plans to establish
a far-reaching vision and uphold the highest standards of professional training
and academic pursuits to attract participants from national and international
audiences. The purpose of the Center is to develop a living laboratory where
practitioners, faculty, and students of all academic disciplines can conduct research,
study, and have an exchange of ideas in order to afford "state of the art"
solutions to critical issues facing the business world today and to establish
certification programs in each of the seven institutes of the Center.
The
Kilpatrick Center will establish seven institutes serving seven general constituencies:
The Institute of Financial Literacy
The Institute of Financial Literacy was created to address the very critical issue of the lack of financial literacy in the United States. The need for a financially literate society has been recognized, as has the need to begin financial education early. In order to do this effectively, programs must be developed to train teachers to be able to provide effective instruction. Teachers must become financially literate before we can expect them to teach our children these life skills. The overarching mission of the Institute for Financial Literacy is to provide training, resources, and support for a comprehensive financial literacy program for students and their teachers K-12. At present, the Institute is developing curricula to be utilized in Free Enterprise classes in Louisiana high schools.It is a goal of the Institute to develop a semester-long required course for all high school students. Our initial focus will be on high school age students, however, in the future, programs will be expanded to include elementary and middle school students. An ultimate goal would be the establishment of a College of Financial Literacy that would be dedicated to educating teachers, students and everyday citizens in the principles of sound financial planning.
For the first time in the history of Louisiana, a summer institute was held during the summer of 2003 at LSU in Shreveport. Under the direction of Dr. Harvey Rubin and Dr. Carlos Spaht, teachers and students participated in a seminar integrating both knowledge and applications of personal financial planning. The program continued during the summers of 2004 through 2007. The program will be held again in the summer of 2008.
The Institute of Military Personal Financial Planning Studies
Over the last fifteen years, this Insurance and Personal Financial Planning curriculum has been refined to provide direct application to the challenges and needs unique to military service. Having a deliberate and experienced understanding of the military service environment allows the Consortium to instruct service men and women effectively maximizing the offerings and opportunities available to them during and after their military service. In addition, specialized programs for military personnel in transit from military to civilian life are available emphasizing critical aspects of private employment such as Section 401K Plans, Health Insurance, Life Insurance, Automobile Insurance, Homeowner's Insurance, Renter's Insurance, and Stock Options.
The Institute of Insurance and Financial Professional Studies
The
Consortium offers Insurance and Professional Financial Planning courses for individuals
working in the financial industry. With participants such as insurance professionals,
certified public accountants and tax attorneys, the sophistication and working
knowledge level is considerably higher than the basic personal planning courses.
Course curricula are modified to include more extensive tax planning techniques
and estate planning criteria. Pre-licensing courses for Life/Health and Property/Casualty
Insurance are being taught at LSU in Shreveport and are available for broadcasting
to LSU campuses in Alexandria and Eunice as well as Northwestern State University
in Natchitoches, Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Nicholls State
University in Thibodeaux, Southern University in Baton Rouge and McNeese State
University in Lake Charles. Continuing Education Classes are available for Property/Casualty
and Life/Health Insurance agents. Classes are being taught in Shreveport and are
available for broadcasting to campuses in Alexandria, Lake Charles, Eunice, Hammond,
Thibodeaux, Baton Rouge and Natchitoches. The Consortium offers courses leading
to the professional designations of CFP, CLU/ChFC, CPCU and Insurance Institute
of America designation courses to include Associate in Claims and Associate in
Risk Management programs. These classes are also being taught in Shreveport and
are available for broadcasting to Natchitoches, Alexandria, Lake Charles, Hammond,
Thibodeaux, Baton Rouge and Eunice.
The Institute of Consumer Financial Planning Studies
Each
semester Dr. Harvey Rubin teaches a course on Personal Financial Planning. Being
available to a variety of backgrounds and interests throughout the community the
course structure allows for in-depth discussion of detailed issues of importance
to a particular class in addition to communicating the guiding principles of sound,
secure financial independence. This class is designed to be televised on an interactive
television network to numerous sites. As a result of enthusiastic interest,
courses are currently being designed to assist private corporations in educating
their employees on basic insurance and financial planning concepts, options and
alternatives. These courses are intended to remain flexible in order that class
content and direction meet the needs and desires of the corporation. Contact the
Consortium if you are interested in a personal financial planning course for your
company.
The Institute of Tax and Estate Planning
The Tax and Estate Planning Institute offers a variety of tax courses designed to provide lawyers, CPAs, investment advisers, insurance professionals, and those engaged in other disciplines with the tools they need to evaluate the tax consequences that attend investment and business opportunities. These courses, which range from fundamental principles to advanced concepts, include income tax topics related to individuals, corporations and shareholders, partnerships and other pass-through business entities, estates and trusts, and nonprofit entities. The Institute also offers courses in the fields of estate and gift taxation and estate planning.
The Institute of Certified Service Representative (CSR) Training
The institute plans to develop a training program for CSRs that will provide a job market for those seeking jobs in the insurance field as well as provide a resource for insurance agencies and companies seeking trained employees.
In the insurance environment today, there is a large demand for CSRs trained in the insurance business, including underwriting, marketing practices, insurance profitability, the product development process, and portfolio management. This institute can help to fill the insurance industry's need for qualified personnel.
The Institute of Insurance and Financial Services Executive Development
Plans are to develop a curriculum and obtain a faculty in order to establish this institute, filling a void in the professional education of executives in financial services. It will also provide opportunities for these executives to observe and interact with participants in other programs at the Kilpatrick Center.