Press Release

National Student Loan Clearinghouse Announces New Name, Services Company Celebrates Seven Years of Commitment to Higher Education

HERNDON, VA, SEPT. 14, 2000 --The National Student Loan Clearinghouse today announced a new name, products and services that expand on its position in and commitment to the higher education industry. The not-for-profit organization will now be known as:

The Clearinghouse’s board of directors voted to eliminate the word "loan" from its original title because the organization offers several new services beyond those associated with the student loan function.

"In 1993, we set out to create a national repository for the retention and reporting of student enrollment data for the education loan industry," said Ronald F. Hunt, Chairman, National Student Clearinghouse. "Today, we have 40 million student records, which is not only a testament to our success, but an opportunity for us to meet the education community’s need for new services. Our trusted relationships with schools allows us to use this database to help them reduce their workload and conduct valuable research."

Expanded FERPA-compliant and school-sanctioned products and services include:

DegreeVerify^SM — The Clearinghouse accesses its database of information to verify student degrees, certificates and other educational achievements for inquiring employers, a process traditionally performed by a school Registrar’s office. Employers can receive degree verification information via telephone, fax or through the Clearinghouse’s interactive, password-protected Web site, www.studentclearinghouse.org.

EnrollmentVerify^SM — The Clearinghouse uses its database to confirm enrollment for students who apply for student-based consumer services such as credit cards, travel, and healthcare insurance. This verification is traditionally done by a school Registrar’s office.

EnrollmentSearch^SM — This suite of search engine tools allows schools to query the Clearinghouse’s database to identify a student’s enrollment at other institutions before, during and after they have attended their school. The service allows schools to improve their performance in recruiting, selecting and retaining future students.

LoanLocator^SM — This free, Web-based service allows students to quickly identify and locate their education loan holders. Education loans are often sold to different companies, and students are often unaware of who they should repay. A quick visit to www.loanlocator.org provides students with their loan holders names, telephone numbers and Web site addresses.

TRA Reporting Service — The Clearinghouse uses its database to provide the school’s Hope/Lifetime Learning Tax Credit vendor with all of the data necessary to complete IRS mandated 1098-T forms for students and the IRS.

"The Clearinghouse is a trusted, respected and important partner in higher education," said Polly Griffin, Registrar at Dartmouth College. "Without their accurate and consistent management of student records, we’d return to the days when all information was reported on individual student deferment forms. Their new products and services are a welcome addition to the management of student data, and we are proud to be one of the first schools to participate in their new DegreeVerify service."

The National Student Clearinghouse, a not-for-profit corporation, was launched in 1993 as the National Student Loan Clearinghouse by a cross-section of schools and student loan industry representatives to improve loan services for colleges and universities, guaranty agencies, lenders and the federal government. Today, more than 2,300 colleges and universities participate in the Clearinghouse program. These institutions enroll more than 11.3 million students, representing 80% of the nation’s enrolled students. All 36 state and national guarantors and 50+ loan servicers have joined the Clearinghouse, representing 40 million students.

Press Inquiries:
Kathleen Dugan
Marketing Director
703-742-4208
dugan@studentclearinghouse.org