Home    >    2004 Press Releases

Pearson Government Solutions Wins $180M Contract Supporting the U.S. Department of Education

Arlington, VA - January 21, 2004 - Pearson Government Solutions today announced that it had been awarded a $180 million five-year contract with five one-year renewal periods to help the U.S. Department of Education consolidate services providing federal loans for students in higher education. Work is expected to begin this month.

Working under a subcontract to ACS, Pearson will join other major partners Raytheon and EDS to help the Department of Education’s Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) improve management of student aid obligations through efficient use of timely and accurate information, common functions and shared data.

FSA is the office within the Department of Education responsible for managing the federal student aid programs and processes. The largest source of student aid in America, FSA programs provide over $60 billion a year in grants, loans, and work-study assistance in response to more than 10 million student applications. FSA manages a loan portfolio of over $100 billion.

Pearson has worked with the FSA since 1994, helping it to recover billions of dollars in defaulted student loans and program overpayments through the operation of a toll-free customer service information center, a correspondence unit, and other critical support services. Pearson will continue to provide these and additional services as part of a streamlined customer service center joining Pearson operations in Lawrence, Kan. and Iowa City, Iowa, with ACS facilities in Utica, N.Y., and Bakersfield, Calif.

Pearson has a 30-year history of delivering federal student aid systems and services on behalf of the Department of Education, promoting access to higher education, improving services to students and families, increasing efficiency of operations and reducing costs. Pearson developed, deployed and maintains FAFSA on the Web, an award-winning website that allows students to apply for financial aid securely via the Internet, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

About Pearson Government Solutions

Pearson Government Solutions, based in Arlington, Va., serves the federal government market, delivering solutions that support public sector entities in their delivery of information, benefits, and services to their constituents. Clients include the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Justice, Labor, and Veterans Affairs, and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

The company operates as a business of Pearson Education, the world’s largest education company, which in turn is part of Pearson (NYSE: PSO; LSE: PSON), the international media company. Pearson’s other primary operations include the Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group.

About ACS

ACS, a Fortune 500 company with more than 40,000 people supporting client operations in nearly 100 countries, provides business process and information technology outsourcing solutions to world-class commercial and government clients. The company’s Class A common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “ACS.” ACS makes technology work. Visit ACS on the Internet at www.acs-inc.com.

Media Contact
David Hakensen
(952) 681-3040