American Student Assistance^®, the nation's first student loan guarantor, has earned international honors for its multimedia communications. The company's 13-member marketing team recently won two Ava Awards and a MarCom award for its innovative tradeshow audio-visual display and audio CD corporate holiday card.

ASA's booth at the 2007 National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators conference was recognized with one platinum and one gold Ava, the highest and second-highest honors, respectively, awarded by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals. The AMCP presents Avas annually to professionals involved in the concept, writing, direction, shooting, and editing of audio-visual materials and programs. In 2007, nearly 1,700 entries were submitted for consideration from around the world.

ASA's multimedia booth featured video and sound dome presentations that highlighted recordings of actual telephone conversations between ASA repayment counselors and student loan borrowers, as well as facts about the company's research and results in student loan default prevention. ASA earned the platinum Ava in the "Visual and Sound Editing Category" and the gold Ava for "Video and Film Presentation."

"We are honored to be recognized by AMCP," said Aimee O'Brien-Jeyarajan, director of marketing for ASA. "What we are most proud of is how these efforts showcased the true essence of ASA -- our personal approach to helping student loan borrowers manage their debt."

The Boston-based ASA won a gold MarCom award, also judged by the AMCP, for its 2006 corporate holiday card that featured an audio CD of seasonal songs and a snowy Boston cityscape painted by a local artist.

"Good communication in all forms is crucial in today's student loan marketplace," said O'Brien-Jeyarajan, "and we are proud of our marketing team's ability to produce relevant, attention-grabbing communications that deliver the ASA experience to our customers."

About American Student Assistance

American Student Assistance is a private, federally funded, nonprofit organization that helps students and parents manage higher education debt. Its unique Wellness programs give student loan borrowers the support they need to avoid default. Incorporated in 1956, ASA was the nation’s first private student loan guarantee agency and a model for the federal student loan program. As an administrator of the Federal Family Education Loan Program, ASA delivers quality default prevention, guarantee, origination and fund delivery services to students, parents, schools and lenders nationwide. ASA guarantees more than $2 billion in student loans annually and currently manages a student loan portfolio worth more than $45 billion. Based in Boston, American Student Assistance employs more than 700 associates nationwide and has been recognized by the Boston Business Journal and the Boston Globe as one of the region’s best places to work. Visit www.amsa.com or call 617.728.4631 for more information.