Sallie Mae (NYSE: SLM) today announced

that delegates participating in its “Campaign for Literacy” during the

Republican National Convention donated more than 1,500 children’s books to

benefit family literacy programs.

The Center for Literacy, Pennsylvania’s oldest community-based family

literacy organization, will distribute the books throughout the Philadelphia

area, as well as in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., where Sallie Mae has a servicing center

with more than 800 employees.

Sallie Mae’s “Campaign for Literacy” was officially launched last week at

the Free Library of Philadelphia. Sallie Mae’s Vice Chairman and CEO Albert

L. Lord was joined at the kick-off event by the Pennsylvania First Lady

Michele M. Ridge, along with Governors’ spouses from across the country.

“The ‘Campaign for Literacy’ is an outstanding way to highlight the value

of literacy as the fundamental building block of success. Literacy is

essential to all learning, and we appreciate the generosity of delegates in

giving books to literacy programs in Pennsylvania,” said Mrs. Ridge, who read

a book to 80 children attending the ceremony at the Free Library.

“I’m happy to join Sallie Mae to highlight family literacy as a national

priority and to help children and their parents in Philadelphia and Wilkes-

Barre work together to improve reading and literacy skills,” Mrs. Ridge

continued.

Mr. Lord said, “We thank Mrs. Ridge for her tireless commitment to

literacy and to improving the lives of the people of Pennsylvania. We hope

that our efforts, along with Mrs. Ridge’s support, will further the national

dialogue on the need for improving family literacy.”

Joining Mrs. Ridge in her support of Sallie Mae’s literacy program is

Texas First Lady Laura Bush. Mrs. Ridge and Mrs. Bush sent a joint letter to

GOP convention delegates, encouraging them to donate a book through Sallie

Mae’s “Campaign for Literacy” book drive.

Sallie Mae, founded 27 years ago and headquartered in Reston, Va., is the

nation’s leading provider of financial services for postsecondary education

and the country’s largest provider of funding for education loans. The

company currently owns and manages loans for 5.3 million borrowers and also

provides parents, students and educators with comprehensive information on the

financial aid process. Since 1990, Sallie Mae has been a leading sponsor of

Reading is Fundamental (RIF), the oldest and largest literacy organization in

the country. RIF promotes literacy by helping children discover the joy of

books. Sallie Mae purchases books and nameplates for local school districts,

and employees donate their time to distribute and read the books to children.

The Center for Literacy (CFL) is the nation’s largest and Pennsylvania’s

oldest community-based, nonprofit adult literacy organization. CFL’s mission

is to provide free literacy instruction and a wide range of other literacy

services that respond to the diversity of individuals and enable learners to

meet their goals. Over 400 volunteers and more than 40 dedicated staff

members help students achieve their personal and/or job related goals.

The Free Library of Philadelphia is the City of Philadelphia’s public

library system consisting of 49 branch libraries, three regional libraries,

the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped and the Central Library.

More than 300 professional librarians answer over 2.7 million reference

questions each year at the Free Library. In FY00, 482,000 cardholders checked

out more than six million books and other materials, and more than one million

visitors used the Free Library’s Web site.