CHARLESTON – Fifty West Virginia investment professionals have been named to the 2009 SMART529 Honor Roll for their roles in encouraging families to save for college, State Treasurer John Perdue announced today.

“West Virginia’s financial advisors play a valuable role to many families trying to prepare for future college costs,” Perdue said. “Our SMART529 Honor Roll recognizes those individuals who have excelled in spreading the word on the advantages of the state’s SMART529 college savings plan.”

Financial advisors named to the 2009 SMART529 Honor Roll were rated on both the number of new accounts opened and total dollars invested in the SMART529 program from May 2008 through April 2009. Investment professionals receiving the 2009 Honor Roll award were:

State residents have the option of opening SMART529 college savings accounts either directly with the program or through investment professionals located in banks, investment firms and other financial services businesses throughout West Virginia.  Perdue said many people prefer to have the assistance of an investment professional when planning savings strategies and selecting investments for their SMART529 accounts, even though the plan management costs are somewhat higher than in the direct-marketed versions. He said that the state’s investment professionals are responsible for getting many more West Virginia families saving for college than would otherwise have been the case.

SMART529 is a program of the West Virginia College Prepaid Tuition and Savings Program Board of Trustees, of which State Treasurer John Perdue is chairman. At the end of June, the SMART529 college savings plans had more than 100,240 accounts with investments totaling over $97.9 million on June 30, 2009. West Virginia’s SMART529 program is open to investors nationwide.

SMART529 college savings plans are issued by the West Virginia College Prepaid Tuition and Savings Program Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees has selected The Hartford Life Insurance Company to administer its college savings program.

West Virginia offers special state tax incentives for West Virginia taxpayers who invest in SMART529. Before opening or contributing to an account, if investors or their designated beneficiaries are residents of states other than West Virginia, investors should compare the other state’s qualified tuition program and any state tax or other benefits that may provide.

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses associated with SMART529 before investing. This and other information are provided in the Offering Statements for the SMART529 college savings plans and in the prospectuses or other disclosure documents for the Underlying Funds, which can be obtained by calling 866-574-3542. The Offering Statements should read carefully before opening an account or sending money.