Boston University to Offer Online Program for Financial Planners Program developed and distributed by Acadient, Inc. Courses Feature Pearson Education and National Underwriter Textbooks BOSTON—July 18, 2002—Boston University, one of the nation’s most prestigious academic institutions, today announced plans to develop in partnership with Acadient, Inc. an interactive, multimedia Online Program for Financial Planners. The Program features content from Pearson Education, the world’s largest integrated educational publisher (a Pearson, NYSE: PSO, company), and The National Underwriter Company, a leading professional and educational publisher for the financial planning industry. The Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners will be based on what is today one of the nation’s oldest classroom-based programs for financial planners – The Boston University Program for Financial Planners which was founded in 1981. Subject to approval, which is anticipated in September 2002, students who complete the Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners will fulfill Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board) requirements for instruction leading up to the CFP® Certification Examination1. “Boston University's Program for Financial Planners was established more than two decades ago to meet the need for professionals trained to assist clients in planning for present and future financial security,” said Program Director Robert J. Glovsky, JD, LLM, CFP®, ChFC, CLU. “Today, Boston University builds upon its long history of excellence in education in creating the Online Program for Financial Planners. The Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners is an interactive, multimedia program that will deliver the same high quality education found in our classroom-based program, as well as continue our long tradition of meeting the needs of a diverse array of financial professionals from around the world who desire anytime, anywhere access.” John Ebersole, Associate Provost and Dean of Boston University’s Division of Extended Education, said the Boston University’s Online Program for Financial Planners satisfies three of the Division’s academic and business objectives. “The central purpose of Boston University’s distance education division is access,” he said. “We want to make our classroom-based programs available to a wide range of students around the world. We are also committed to meeting the continuing education needs of businesses. And last, we want to be seen as a source of professional certifications. The acquisition of a certification by a student is a very important way of demonstrating competence and credibility in an increasingly complex and competitive economy.” The Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners is being developed in partnership with Boston-based Acadient, Inc., a leading developer and distributor of interactive, multimedia education to the financial services industry. “Acadient, which understands how to use technology to deliver education, is excited to partner with Boston University, one of the world’s great academic institutions, to develop the Online Program for Financial Planners,” said Greg Titus, President of Acadient. “This Program is especially unique in that it blends the best of the classroom experience with the best of online experience. It incorporates adult learning principles along with the practical experience of Boston University’s faculty and instructors to create the next generation of learning for the financial planning profession.” Titus also said the Boston University Online Program complements Acadient’s Mutual Fund Industry Specialist Certificate Program, which was built in partnership with the National Investment Company Service Association. The Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners, which will consist of six courses, including Introduction to Financial Planning, Risk Management, Investments, Tax Planning, Retirement Planning and Employee Benefits, and Estate Planning, is expected to be available later this year. “The Program’s courses enhance a student’s understanding of a variety of financial strategies and products, and introduce the basics of financial planning,” said Glovsky. In addition to the practical experience of the Boston University Program for Financial Planners’ instructors, the courses in the Program will feature textbooks from Pearson Education, which has the most widely trusted and respected programs in educational and professional publishing. The Pearson textbooks have been authored by some of the world’s leading authorities on investments, insurance, estate planning, taxes, and retirement and employee benefit planning, including those by Nobel Prize for Economics Laureate William Sharpe, Ph.D. Some of the Pearson textbooks that will be used and incorporated in the Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners include: Personal Finance: Turning Money into Wealth and Workbook Package, 2/e by Arthur Keown Fundamentals of Investments by William Sharpe, Gordon Alexander and Jeffrey Bailey Prentice Hall Federal Taxation 2003 Individuals: 1/e by Thomas Pope, Kenneth Anderson and John Kramer Life and Health Insurance, 13/e by Harold D. Skipper, Jr. and Kenneth Black  Other courses in the Program feature textbooks from The National Underwriter Company, which is regarded as one of the premiere publishers of professional references for financial planners, and is known for its high quality content and stable of industry-trusted authors and editors. The Program will incorporate two textbooks from the company’s prestigious Tools & Techniques Series. Stephan Leimberg, a nationally- recognized planning expert and CEO of Leimberg and LeClair, Inc., an estate and financial planning software company, is lead author of the Series. Several prominent planning professionals also contributed to the books. Those books include: The Tools and Techniques of Estate Planning, 12th Edition by Stephan R. Leimberg, JD, CLU The Tools and Techniques of Employee Benefit and Retirement Planning, by Stephan R. Leimberg, JD, CLU The Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners will be made available through financial services companies for their employees and constituents, as well as to individuals. Students can also enroll in the Program to obtain Continuing Education Units for career development and advancement, to improve overall knowledge of financial planning, or to acquire specific knowledge. Boston University and Acadient are also in the process of creating an Advisory Board comprised of thought and education leaders who will review and critique the quality of the Program. Please visit www.bu.edu/finplanners to learn more about the Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners. About Boston University and the Program for Financial Planners Boston University, the fourth largest independent university in the United States, enrolls nearly 29,000 students in its 17 schools and colleges. The University offers an exceptional grounding in the liberal arts, a broad range of program in the arts, sciences, engineering, and professional areas, and state-of-the-art facilities for teaching and research. Boston University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution. The Boston University Program for Financial Planners was established in 1981 to meet the need for professionals trained to assist clients in planning for present and future financial security. It is designed to meet the needs of a diverse array of financial professionals. A registration application has been submitted to CFP Board to register the Boston University Online Program for Financial Planners. Students who complete the six courses may sit for the two-day CFP® Certification Examination, pending approval from the CFP Board which is expected in September 2002. About Acadient Acadient is a leading developer and distributor of multimedia, interactive education for the financial services industry. Based in Boston, the company develops, hosts, and manages courseware, webcasts, and private-label online universities for financial services companies and industry organizations. The company’s team of instructional and technology design experts delivers customized courseware and manages the online, offline, and e-commerce components of an organization’s online learning systems. Visit www.acadient.com for more information. About Pearson Educating 100 million people worldwide, Pearson Education is the global leader in integrated education publishing. With such renowned brands as Prentice Hall, Longman, Scott Foresman, Addison Wesley, NCS Pearson, and many others, Pearson Education provides quality content, assessment tools and educational services in all available media to a worldwide marketplace, spanning the learning curve from birth through college and beyond. Pearson Education is also the global leader in online learning with nearly 2,000 textbook companion Web sites, the InformIT website for technology professionals, and the Learning Network, the award winning online resource for parents, teachers, and children. Pearson Education is part of Pearson (NYSE: PSO), the international media company. In addition to Pearson Education, Pearson's primary operations include Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group. About The National Underwriter Company As one of the financial planning industry’s leading publishers of books, reference services, and software and online products, The National Underwriter Company is committed to providing superior titles and educational offerings that help professionals at all levels achieve success. The company offers hundreds of high-quality, up-to-date resources for professionals in the financial services and human resources fields, among others. With key titles such as Tax Facts, FC&S Bulletins and The Tools & Techniques Series, National Underwriter has built a reputation for quality, excellence and accuracy among today’s largest financial planning companies, Fortune 500 companies, universities and other educational programs. The National Underwriter Company also publishes two weekly magazines, National Underwriter/ Life & Health/Financial Services, and National Underwriter, Property & Casualty/Risk Benefits Management. Visit www.nationalunderwriter.com for more information. (1) About the CFP® Certification The CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification is the best-known certification in the financial planning community. CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and the federally registered CFP (with flame logo) certification marks owned by Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. The marks are awarded to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements. Boston University does not certify individuals to use the CFP®, Certified Financial Planner™ and federally registered CFP (with flame logo) certification marks.  CFP certification is granted only by Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards to those persons who, in addition to completing an educational requirement such as this CFP Board-Registered Program, have met its ethics, experience and examination requirements.” -- 30 -- Contacts: Carolyn Montalto Director of Marketing & Enrollment Strategies Boston University, Division of Extended Education 617-353-2979 cmontalt@bu.edu Robert Powell Managing Director Acadient, Inc. 617-449-3312 rpowell@acadient.com   Kit Thompson Communications Pearson Education 212-782-3486 kit.thompson@pearsoned.com Laura Knox Marketing Assistant The National Underwriter Co. 859-692-2157 lknox@nuco.com