Harrisburg, PA - American Education Services (AES) announced today that borrowers with AES-serviced student loans have been able to use their Upromise college savings to pay down over $1 million in student loan debt since the inception of the AES-Upromise Program in November of 2002.

"The success of the AES-Upromise Program has been phenomenal," said Dick Willey, president and chief executive officer of AES. "Our participating borrowers have reduced their student loan debt by over $1 million to date. And they're doing it by making everyday purchases - such as getting gas, buying groceries, and talking on the phone. It's a unique concept that student loan borrowers can take advantage of by channeling their shopping to hundreds of Upromise partners."

The AES-Upromise Program was established as an exclusive relationship between AES and Upromise permitting AES and its remote client servicers to become the only student loan network to allow borrowers to help repay their student loans with money from their Upromise college savings accounts.

"Our relationship with AES has made a meaningful difference in reducing student loan debt," said Michael Libenson, vice president of partner services for Upromise. "We encourage students who are borrowing for their education to consider this unique program."

Borrowers with AES-serviced student loans need only establish their free Upromise account at www.upromise.com/aes, register their credit, debit, and grocery cards and link their AES-serviced student loan account. A percentage of eligible purchase amounts made from participating grocery and drug stores, restaurants, retail shops, online shopping sites and more are automatically applied to the their Upromise account.

The savings are transferred to the borrower's AES account on a quarterly basis and applied directly to their student loan balance.

AES remote client servicers include Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA), Iowa Student Loan, Student Assistance Foundation, and Edfinancial Services; in total over 2 million borrowers are currently eligible to benefit from this program.

Further information on the AES-Upromise Program can be found at www.upromise.com/aes.

About Upromise Upromise is the country's largest non-governmental service helping families save for college. Membership is free and allows families to automatically save money for college while making everyday purchases at more than 20,000 grocery and drug stores, 14,000 gas stations, 9,000 restaurants, 10,000 hotel locations nationwide, thousands of retail stores and over 250 online shopping sites. Upromise's partners include America Online, Citi®, Coca-Cola®, Exxon Mobil Corporation, Kellogg Company, Kimberly-Clark, McDonald's®, SBC Communications, JCPenney.com, LandsEnd.com, sears.com, and hundreds of others. Upromise also makes it easy for families to invest in tax-advantaged college savings plans and to use contributions to pay off student loans. The 529 college savings plans are offered through Upromise Investments, Inc. (member NASD/SIPC). Upromise is headquartered in Needham, Mass. For additional information, visit www.upromise.com or call 781.707.8400.

About AES American Education Services (AES), an unincorporated division of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA), is a not-for-profit multifaceted financial aid services organization that harnesses the power of technology and innovation to better serve students, families, schools and lenders throughout the nation.

Over the past 37 years, the Agency has grown from a small student loan guarantor with a guaranty volume of only 4,600 loans into one of the nation's largest, full-service financial aid services providers. Today, AES manages more than $34 billion in total assets and serves nearly four million students nationally through its guaranty, servicing and financial aid processing systems. The funds generated from its extensive operations are used to improve higher education opportunities and lower the cost of financial assistance for students and families while streamlining the entire process for the financial aid community.