Terry Lyons received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from Texas Tech in 1980. Upon graduation, Terry joined the Fort Worth office of Ernst and Whinney (now EY) as an auditor and became a licensed CPA. During his time as an auditor, he worked with clients in the insurance, banking, and hospitality industries. Terry’s relationships and experience at Ernst and Whinney led him to a position at UICI Student Insurance Division. The knowledge and skills he took with him later made him a successful Chief Underwriting Officer there.

In December of 1998, Terry founded Academic HealthPlans (AHP). With his wide background in accounting, underwriting, marketing, and sales, he propelled AHP to become the market leader in the student health insurance industry. Starting with only one employee and one university client, Terry grew the company to over 150 employees, over 400 universities, and 500,000 insured student members with a prominent national presence.

In January 2020, Terry sold AHP to Risk Strategies, where he currently serves as the National Education Practice Leader. Risk Strategies is a leading national specialty insurance brokerage and risk management firm. Terry was honored as an Education Power Broker Award Winner in 2022. Terry and his wife, Susan, have four children, Paige, Holden, Jameson, and Layton.