USA Funds Introduces New Customer Support Team

INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- USA Funds® has announced a new team of customer support experts who will assist staff at postsecondary institutions with products and services to promote the success of their institutions and their students.

USA Funds customer relations representatives work hand-in-hand with USA Funds' team of School and Student Services consultants to assist postsecondary institutions from product setup through all phases of implementation and ongoing support. Members of the team include:

• Janet Sorg, customer relations director. Sorg offers 21 years of experience serving schools and students. Sorg previously served in borrower assistance, loan conversion and loan consolidation units at USA Group and Sallie Mae.

• Amy Perry, customer relations administrator. Perry has more than 18 years' experience in school and student services. She previously served in guarantee operations and loan consolidation units at USA Group and Sallie Mae.

• Jeanie Stewart, customer relations representative. With 16 years of experience in customer service, Stewart previously worked in loan consolidation, consumer market development and customer service areas for USA Group, Bank One and Chase Student Loans.

• Cindy Bailey, customer relations representative. Bailey offers more than 27 years of experience, including previous service at USA Funds, USA Group and Sallie Mae in loan conversion and technical writing.

• Tamara Hollandbeck, customer relations representative. Hollandbeck has 13 years of previous experience with USA Group in corporate training and customer service. She also has worked in bank branch management and as a performance improvement manager.

• Shelly Sherrill, customer relations representative. Sherrill brings 19 years of experience in serving schools, students and lenders. At USA Group and Sallie Mae, she worked in lender relations and for USA Funds University. Sherrill most recently served as a financial aid project manager for an education management services company.

Schools that make extensive use of USA Funds products and services will benefit from a designated account manager, who will provide an extra measure of support. USA Funds' account managers include:

• Valerie Walthall, account manager, East. Walthall has 20 years of school and student service experience. She previously served in loan application, training, customer service and marketing at USA Group, and most recently as USA Funds' customer relations manager for Kansas and Wyoming.

• Julie Naccarato, account manager, West. Naccarato brings 27 years of experience in serving schools and students. She most recently served as lender relations manager for NELA®. She previously worked at Oregon State University and Washington State University.

"In our role as a student loan guarantor, USA Funds established a reputation for exceptional customer service," said Denise B. Feser, USA Funds senior vice president, School and Student Services. "This experienced and attentive team of customer relations specialists will help us continue that tradition of delivering the highest levels of support to our school-customers."

In keeping with its nonprofit mission, USA Funds offers postsecondary institutions and students an array of products and services, including the following:

• USA Funds Life Skills®, a comprehensive online personal finance curriculum for college students.

• Borrower counseling information, including print and online resources to help student- and parent-borrowers minimize and manage their education debt.

• Debt management and default prevention consultations and workshops for higher education institutions.

• USA Funds University, training for financial aid professionals through in-person workshops, webcasts and an online curriculum of courses in student aid administration.

• USA Funds Ask Policy(SM), a resource to answer school questions about federal student aid program policies and procedures.

Headquartered in Indianapolis, USA Funds is a nonprofit corporation that works to enhance postsecondary education preparedness, access and success by providing and supporting financial and other valued services. For more information about USA Funds, visit www.usafunds.org.

SOURCE USA Funds