November 18, 2009

The Boston Globe Names American Student Assistance to Globe 100

The Boston Globe Top Places to Work 2009American Student Assistance® (ASA), the nonprofit federal student loan service provider with proven results in helping students successfully manage college debt, has been named one of the Top Places to Work in Massachusetts in the second annual employee-based survey project from The Boston Globe. The Globe 100’s Top Places to Work ’09 magazine was published in the Sunday Globe on November 8. Online, the report can be found at www.boston.com/topworkplaces.

Produced by the same team that compiles the 22-year-old Globe 100 report of the best-performing public companies in Massachusetts, the Top Places to Work recognizes the most progressive companies in the state based on employee opinions about company leadership, compensation and training, diversity/inclusion, career development, family-friendly flexibility, and values and ethics. Private companies and nonprofits as well as publicly held businesses were included in the analysis.

The rankings in the Globe 100’s Top Places to Work are based on survey information collected by Workplace Dynamics, an independent company specializing in employee engagement and retention, from 86,000 employees at 269 Massachusetts organizations. This marks the second year that a Globe 100 report has honored private as well as publicly-held organizations.

ASA was ranked 97th on the overall list. ASA also ranked 33rd in the midsize companies category.

“We are excited to be included on the Globe list for the second year in a row,” said Lauren Rolfe, ASA vice president of human resources. “We believe this trend of achievement from year to year demonstrates our commitment to our associates, as well as their commitment to ASA.”

The publisher of The Boston Globe, Steve Ainsley, stated, “The companies included in the Globe 100’s Top Places to Work have succeeded in creating a positive workplace for their employees in the midst of the uncertainties of the general economy. I congratulate each of them for an outstanding accomplishment.”

As an organization devoted to promoting higher education access and success, ASA is especially proud in these tough economic times to continue not only its tuition reimbursement benefit, but also an innovative student loan repayment program to help employees further themselves through postsecondary education.

To qualify for the Globe 100’s Top Places to Work, a company must have more than 100 employees in Massachusetts. Nearly 1,000 qualified companies accepted an invitation to participate. Rankings were composite scores calculated purely on the basis of employee responses.

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About American Student Assistance

American Student Assistance® (ASA) is a private, federally funded, nonprofit organization that helps students and parents manage higher education debt. Its unique WellnessSM programs give student loan borrowers the support they need to avoid repayment problems. Incorporated in 1956, ASA® was the nation’s first private student loan guarantee agency and a model for the federal student loan program. As a premier student loan service provider, ASA delivers quality delinquency prevention services to the U.S. Department of Education, students, parents, schools, and lenders. ASA provides service to 1.8 million student loan borrowers nationwide and currently manages a student loan portfolio worth $45 billion. Based in Boston, ASA employs more than 500 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.asa.org or call 617.728.4631 for more information.