Rob Cohen
Robert Cohen, chairman and CEO of IMA Financial Group Inc., has been named the 2022 recipient of Metropolitan State University of Denver’s highest honor, the Marathon Award.
The award is presented annually at spring Commencement to a distinguished member of the University community. As a group of roadrunners is called a “marathon,” the award recognizes those distinguished members of the University community who exemplify the Roadrunner Difference. It is the highest and most prestigious award conveyed by MSU Denver, recognizing especially meritorious contributions to the University’s mission and a spirit of service that reflects society’s highest values.
“The Roadrunner Difference is the spirit of determination and persistence that drives students to achieve success on campus and in their careers,” said MSU Denver President Janine Davidson, Ph.D. “Rob is the epitome of the Roadrunner Difference, and his contributions to this University are profound and unparalleled. He has been an integral part of MSU Denver’s journey and has been foundational to many of our successes and milestones.”
Cohen said his desire to serve and support the University and its students has always stemmed from MSU Denver’s vision and values.
“It’s the same thing that has motivated me about MSU Denver since the very first day I set foot on this campus,” Cohen said. “It’s about the mission, and it’s about transformational change. I think the students who come out of this institution are truly transforming our city, our state and our country.”
Cohen has supported MSU Denver for three decades as a member of the Foundation Board and the Board of Trustees, a giving partner and an advocate. While serving as chair of the Board of Trustees, Cohen was involved in several major changes at the University, including:
- Transitioning to university status.
- Renaming and rebranding.
- Increasing the diversity of student enrollment.
- Enrolling 85% of first-time students into the University’s First Year Success program.
- Adding graduate programming and increasing graduate-student enrollment.
- Launching the initiative to build the Aerospace and Engineering Sciences Building.
- Establishing a special nonresident tuition rate for undocumented students that directly contributed to the passage of Colorado’s ASSET Bill, which allows eligible undocumented students to pay in-state tuition and receive College Opportunity Fund stipends.
Pursuing the nonresident tuition rate for undocumented students, Cohen said, “was the right thing to do.”
In 2017, the Cohen family announced the Molly and Rob Cohen Athletic Pacesetter Scholarship Program, which has awarded 29 scholarships to student-athletes. The Assembly Athletic Complex’s 23,000-square-foot athletic center was named the Cohen Center for Athletics in honor of the family that year.
Cohen’s accomplishments in the business community are also well-documented. He started IMA Financial Group’s Denver office in 1986 with two associates. Today, the company is among the largest independent insurance brokerages in the nation, with more than 1,700 associates.
Two primary focus areas of the IMA Foundation are education and advancing youth, and more specifically, ensuring that students graduate with increased skills and knowledge. In addition to the work of the IMA Foundation, Cohen has made diversity and community service core elements of the business including cultivating a leadership team with as many women as men. Last year, employees volunteered 7,500 hours and gave more than $254,000 in personal contributions, and the IMA Foundation gave $514,500 to 61 nonprofits.
For these and other contributions to the MSU Denver community and beyond, Cohen will receive the Marathon Award during Commencement on Friday. Stay tuned for more coverage in the Early Bird and RED.