WICHITA, Kan., Aug. 26, 2008—Paying for college just got a whole lot easier for Beverly Anderson of Wichita, Kansas. Sallie Mae, the nation’s leading provider of education funding, today announced that Anderson has won the company’s Parent Answer Sweepstakes, an annual giveaway that rewards a parent of a college student with a $10,000 scholarship.
Anderson will use the money to pay tuition for Laura, the older of her two daughters, who is entering her sophomore year at Kansas State University. Although Laura earned a good deal of scholarship money for her freshman year, Anderson says those scholarships were non-renewable, and her family was starting to feel the pressure to come up with the remaining funds. Anderson explains that while she used savings plans for both of her daughters, she often wondered if the plan she developed would meet her children’s higher education needs. The full interview with Anderson, as well as her tips for parents with college-age children, is available online at www.SallieMae.com/parents.
“This is so exciting,” said Anderson. “It couldn’t be anything better than something to help pay for Laura’s education. This is a major event in our family.”
In its sixth year, the Parent Answer Sweepstakes is open to parents who have one or more children under the age of 24 who will be enrolled in college for the upcoming academic year. To enter the Parent Answer Sweepstakes, go to www.SallieMae.com/parents for a complete list of program terms and conditions. Simply click on “Sign Up” to enter for your chance to win!
Sallie Mae’s Parent Answer Sweepstakes is part of the company’s dedication to helping students and families to follow a 1-2-3 approach to paying for college: first, use free money such as scholarships and grants; second, fully explore federal student loans; and third, fill any remaining gap with private student loans.
To learn more about the parent PLUS loan, a federally sponsored loan that allows parents of dependent, undergraduate students to finance their unmet financial need, up to the full cost of education, as certified by the student’s school, please visit www.SallieMae.com/ParentPLUS. Federal PLUS Loans carry a fixed interest rate of 8.5%, regardless of the customer’s credit history, income, assets or collateral. The loan may be used to cover education expenses in addition to tuition, including room, board, books, supplies and even travel.
New federal legislation has made qualifying for PLUS loans easier this year as borrowers may be up to 180 days late on payments on their primary mortgage or medical bills and still qualify. Also new this school year: Parents with new PLUS loans may postpone making payments until six months after their beneficiary student completes college or drops below half-time status. In addition, Sallie Mae assists parents who do not immediately qualify for a PLUS loan in resolving outstanding or erroneous credit issues.
For more information contact:
Amanda Holt (703) 984-6102
SLM Corporation (NYSE:
SLM), commonly known as Sallie Mae, is the nation’s leading provider of saving- and paying-for-college programs. The company manages nearly $178 billion in education loans and serves 10 million student and parent customers. Through its Upromise affiliates, the company also manages more than $19 billion in 529 college-savings plans, and is a major, private source of college funding contributions in America with 9.4 million members and $450 million in member rewards. Sallie Mae and its subsidiaries offer debt management services as well as business and technical products to a range of business clients, including higher education institutions, student loan guarantors and state and federal agencies. More information is available at
www.salliemae.com. SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.