PHILADELPHIA—Reaching out and cultivating the risk managers of tomorrow is one of the key challenges facing the profession today.

As colleges and universities begin their fall semesters, local chapters of the Risk & Insurance Management Society Inc. continue to seek ways to get risk management students more involved in RIMS and the profession they have chosen. The efforts range from mentoring students to working with local chapters of Gamma Iota Sigma—the international professional fraternity for students pursuing careers in risk management, insurance and actuarial science—to sponsoring scholarships.

In a recent example, the Delaware Valley chapter of RIMS this year began reaching out to students to get them more involved, said Robert Cartwright, director-member and chapter services for RIMS and loss prevention manager for Bridgestone Americas Holding Inc. in Exton, Pa.

“We have for some time supported educational opportunities through the Spencer Educational Foundation Inc.,” said Earl Varney, president of the chapter and manager-corporate insurance for Philadelphia-based Vanguard Group Inc. “When you take it to the next step, you say, "What can we do to encourage colleges in our own backyard?'”

One of the chapter's younger members, Malika Adams, suggested holding a competition for students at Philadelphia-area colleges, Mr. Varney said.

“We thought a competition would entice them to attend at least one meeting and becoming actively involved,” said Ms. Adams, who is a senior analyst-risk management for Comcast Corp. in Philadelphia.

The chapter's board agreed, saying the students were the future leaders of the profession, and approved a contest in which students would discuss emerging risk issues of the next three to five years, Mr. Cartwright said. The top three contestants made formal presentations to the chapter.

All three presenters won scholarships—$1,000 for first place, $500 for second and $250 for third, said Mr. Varney

The chapter received 16 submissions, he said. “One of the surprises was that some of the universities that don't have a true risk management program made submissions.”

The winning presentation by Temple University students dealt with business reputational risk and ethics and began with pictures of Tiger Woods and Martha Stewart, Ms. Adams said.

“They were highlighting the importance of making ethical decisions in the context of business reputation,” she said.

Since then, the Spencer Foundation has asked the chapter to put together a template for others to follow. “We're working on that right now,” Mr. Cartwright said. “We plan to do the same thing again this coming April.”

A New York RIMS chapter has for several years sponsored a $5,000 annual scholarship for students in the New York tri-state area through the Spencer Foundation.

The scholarship honors Thomas Regan, a former chapter president who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, said Brendan Cahalan, a board member and vp-education for the chapter. The chapter also contributes to the Anita Benedetti Memorial Scholarship at RIMS and sponsors a student to attend RIMS' annual conference, he said.

“We've got a pretty good growing relationship with St. John's University,” said Mr. Cahalan, who is risk manager at Standard Motor Products Inc. in Long Island City, N.Y. Members of the chapter go to the New York-based university's career day to promote RIMS and the industry.

Mr. Cahalan said the chapter also has a “shadow day” during which volunteer risk managers bring students from St. John's with them to work for a day “so they can see what it's like to be in the risk management industry.” Risk managers, brokers and insurers participate, he said, noting that more than 20 companies volunteered to “spend a day in the life” last year.

At the Greater Quad Cities RIMS chapter, “we work at it from several fronts,” said Hal Larson, a member of RIMS' House of Delegates and vp and risk manager at Muscatine Foods Corp. in Muscatine, Iowa.

For example, the chapter has a member of Gamma Iota Sigma included in officers' meetings to help plan the meetings. In addition to having students speak at chapter meetings, chapter members go to Gamma Iota Sigma meetings and some speak at university classes, he said.

Mr. Larson said a lot of the activities are coordinated through the Emmett J. Vaughan Institute of Risk Management and Insurance and at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. The institute offers a certificate in risk management and insurance for business students who want to specialize in risk management, he said.

The biggest question for students is, “When I graduate, how do I get into the profession and into a job? What's my best preparation? What's the path and what can I expect?” said Mr. Larson.

He said the chapter, the Vaughan Institute and the local Gamma Iota Sigma chapter also provide an industry mentoring program, “where we take applications from students for mentoring and match them to professionals in the area.”

Mr. Larson said the program allows students to “get a hands-on, live perspective of the profession. It's one thing to give them academic background, and it's another to show them the real world.”

Mr. Larson noted that RIMS' Student Advisory Council has posted a series of podcasts about mentoring on RIMS' website, www.rims.org.

“It's about the process,” said Debra Rodgers, vice chair of the Student Advisory Council and vp-global risk management at Aramark Corp. in Philadelphia.

“It's about trying to encourage people to do it to build their networking and get started in their careers,” added Ms. Rodgers, this year's Business Insurance Risk Manager of the Year.