By Ben Rogers '02

When Richard Kelleher ’24 walked into my office in November and told me he wanted to do a Winterim Professional — an off-campus, sponsored, “internship-like” program during Winterim — with a focus in finance, I knew it would be an outstanding experience for him.

I immediately got to work using my various networks, including LA Connect. I reached out to a handful of Lawrence Academy alumni and asked if anyone would be interested in helping Richard, not only with his Winterim Professional experience, but also by teaching him about what it takes to become a financial planner or advisor. The number of positive responses I received from alumni wanting to help was outstanding.

This past March, Richard worked with two LA alumni, Bill Tagerman ’73 and Kurt Carter ’83. Bill is the senior vice president of wealth management at UBS in Peabody, Mass., and Kurt is the chief financial officer at TalentNeuron.

“Shadowing both Kurt and Bill for the two weeks really gave me an inside look at private equity and wealth management and how to talk to clients about their personal finances,” says Richard. “Reading and learning about the industry … gave me lots to think about. I am so grateful for this opportunity to learn more as I head into college (the plan is to study business at Providence College). Being able to connect and learn from other LA graduates gave me a great perspective of not just personal finance, but the ability to connect with LA alumni.”

Lawrence Academy has more than 7,000 alumni worldwide. The power of connection and networking is so important, and the more we can link LA students with alumni, the more we will build the LA network. Having Richard team up with LA alumni for this experience will hopefully open more doors for future students as they look at Winterim and how the program can help them long term.