RESTON, Va., Sept. 7, 2007—Sallie Mae, the nation’s leading saving- and paying-for-college company, and The Sallie Mae Fund, the company’s philanthropic arm, are pleased to announce their sponsorship of the 22nd annual Black Family Reunion celebration in Washington, D.C. The free family festival will take place this Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 8 and 9, on the National Mall.
The Black Family Reunion Celebration unifies the community for constructive action in the face of national concerns impacting the African-American family in education, economic development, health and employment. This year’s theme, "Celebrating Families: Strength to Build," honors African-American heritage and the commitment to rebuilding African-American communities.
Sallie Mae is sponsoring the "Education Pavilion" and will present resources and information about financing college and maintaining healthy credit. The Sallie Mae Fund will present a free "Paying for College" workshop in addition to distributing tips for planning for college. Featured resources will include The Sallie Mae Fund’s interactive CD-ROM geared for African-American students, "The Key: An Interactive Guide to Planning and Paying for College," which offers guidance for essay writing, completing college applications, and applying for financial aid.
Created in 1986 by human rights activist Dr. Dorothy I. Height, chair and president emerita of the National Council of Negro Women, the Black Family Reunion Celebration is recognized as one of the nation’s largest family events attracting more than 500,000 people annually. Festival activities, which are free to the public, will include theme pavilions for issues concerning children, teens and young adults, education, sports and fitness, men, and health for women and family.
Festival activities will take place from 12 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For more information about the 22nd annual Black Family Reunion, go to www.ncnw.org/events/reunion.htm.
For more information, contact:
Beth Guerard (703) 984-5621
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 more than $169 billion in education loans and serves 10 million student and parent customers. Through its Upromise affiliates, the company also manages nearly $19 billion in 529 college-savings plans, and is a major, private source of college funding contributions in America with more than 8.5 million members and $425 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.