RESTON, Va., Sept. 28, 2009—Votes are in and investing in a higher education just got easier for the grand prize winner of the Sallie Mae Saving for College video contest, Jeffrey Loveness of Montgomery Creek, Calif.

Loveness will receive a $5,000 cash prize for entering the winning video, “Save Money.” In it, he humorously illustrates with stunt acting the lengths a college student will go to save money, by dodging a car to pick up a penny. A junior at Pepperdine University in Calif., Loveness is majoring in telecommunications and media production and hopes to work as a writer in the entertainment industry. He will use the grand prize to pay for his current tuition.

Sallie Mae, the nation’s leading saving, planning and paying for education company, designed the video contest to raise awareness of the importance of saving to make the investment in education. Ten finalists were selected from a field of 300 valid entries. The 30-second videos were evaluated based on quality, creativity and fit to theme. Online votes cast for each of the 10 finalists entirely decided the grand prize winner.

The runner-up, who will receive a $1,000 cash prize, is Eleanor Michalka of Ennis, Texas, who entered the video “Saving Dough.” Michalka illustrates with cookie dough animation that she saves money by exercising outside instead of paying for a gym membership and choosing basic cable TV. A student at the California Institute of the Arts, Michalka is majoring in character animation and hopes to work with feature animated films. She will use the runner-up cash prize money for her education.

The remaining eight finalists, who each receive $250, are:

• Jeremy Baker of Vero Beach, Fla., with “A Family Affair.”
• Michael Banta of Buena Park, Calif., with “Saving for College 101.” 
• Brian Billand, on behalf of his family, of Carmel, Ind., with “Saving Tips.”
• Toby Cashion of Four Oaks, N.C., with “Earth Saves.”
• J. Kieran Garvey of Doylestown, Pa., with “$ave For College.”
• Ethan Malavolti of Peoria, Ill., with “Just A Day In My Life.”
• Louie Rodriguez of Laredo, Texas, with “Saving Made Easy! In 30 Sec.”
• Amanda Thompson of Cohasset, Mass., with “Econopalooza!”

To help families develop a saving-for-college plan—based on their children’s age and the type of college they may be likely to attend—Sallie Mae offers its free Education Investment Planner available at www.SallieMae.com/invest. In addition, Upromise by Sallie Mae enables families to save money for college while making everyday purchases of participating products and services from groceries to gas, shopping their favorite online store or dining out.

To learn more about Sallie Mae’s Saving for College video contest, visit www.SallieMae.com/savecontest.

For more information contact:
Erica Eriksdotter (703) 984-5628