Sallie Mae Announces 1,100 New Jobs in Delaware

Sallie Mae (NYSE:SLM), the nation’s leading saving- and paying-for-college company, and Delaware Governor Ruth Ann Minner today announced that Sallie Mae plans to open a new Credit Operations Center in the state that would add 1,100 jobs to Delaware’s workforce. As part of today’s jobs announcement, Sallie Mae’s philanthropic organization, The Sallie Mae Fund, contributed $25,000 to the United Way of Delaware.

“As the world’s leading provider of student loans, Sallie Mae is known for its commitment to making education accessible and affordable for all students,” said Governor Ruth Ann Minner. “We are very proud Sallie Mae has chosen Delaware as its newest location to expand operations and continue to achieve its strategic goals.”

The Delaware Economic Development Office and the New Castle County Executive Office worked collaboratively to recruit the company to the state of Delaware.

“The efforts of Governor Minner and the Delaware Economic Development Office made our decision to locate in Delaware an easy one,” said Albert L. (Al) Lord, chief executive officer, Sallie Mae. “This new facility streamlines and enhances our credit, collections, and compliance functions while placing us in a business-friendly state that is rich in financial services talent. I am confident that our move will help position our company for future growth and continued industry leadership.”

Sallie Mae expects to hire approximately 750 employees in Delaware for its new operations center by the end of 2010 and an additional 350 more employees in 2011. The new center will perform specialized credit management, collection, and compliance functions in support of the company’s education lending and servicing business. The new operations center will have a value-added impact of $173.7 million on Delaware’s economy in the first year, and $262 million annually when fully staffed. Additionally, Sallie Mae plans to invest an estimated $10 million for capital expenditures at the site at 300 Continental Drive, Newark, Del.

The Sallie Mae Fund’s $25,000 contribution to the United Way of Delaware will support Governor Minner’s “Delaware Does More” initiative, which supports food banks and other community groups throughout the state. The donation is the largest corporate commitment to this initiative to date.

“We are proud to welcome Sallie Mae to Delaware,” said DEDO Director Judy McKinney-Cherry. “The addition of Sallie Mae provides a diversification within our financial services sector that will add tremendous benefit in the years to come. While not immune to the downturns nationally, the financial services industry continues to be a powerful contributor to our state.”

Sallie Mae is eligible for up to $1 million in company-match workforce training grants associated with the start-up and relocation of operations at the center through the Blue Collar Training Fund program, administered by the Delaware Economic Development Office.

“Sallie Mae’s announcement to bring their new Credit Operations Center to New Castle County is the right medicine for this ailing local economy,” said County Executive Chris Coons. “We are proud to assist Sallie Mae in locating their new center in New Castle County, which will result in hundreds of competitive jobs being created in the years ahead.”