March 4

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
March 4, 2019

UA College Savings Plan Joins March Forth In Addressing Student Debt Anxiety

The UA College Savings Plan is joining 27 other states and animated children’s character Daniel Tiger to build awareness of 529 plans in a national campaign launching March 4th. The aim of the campaign, dubbed the “For Their Future Movement,” aims to help families be better prepared to pay for college expenses and limit student debt of future generations.

The movement’s 529 message will be amplified through a partnership with Fred Rogers Productions, the company founded by Mister Rogers, advocate of children’s education. The series is one of the highest co-viewed children’s shows between parents and young children and is based on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. The campaign’s 529 plan TV ads will air before and after episodes of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, which is based on a character from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.

“It pays to start saving early,” said Lael Oldmixon, director of Alaska’s 529 plan, the UA College Savings Plan. “It’s always the right time to save for college. Families that save small amounts earlier on may end up with more than if they had saved larger amounts later on. More money invested in 529 plans help families save for college and avoid debt.” She added that 68 percent of Americans have never heard of a 529 plan.

“The UA College Savings Plan helps create an Alaska where student debt does not limit the potential of our future generations.” Oldmixon encourages all Alaskans to invest their PFDs in the Plan, stating that the investments made over a period of 18 years could go a long way toward paying for higher education.

Oldmixon said the UA College Savings Plan gives Alaskans certainty, in times of economic uncertainty. One of the Plan’s investment options, the ACT Portfolio, allows one to purchase UA tuition at current rates, for use in the future. If a beneficiary does not attend UA, the plan’s investments may be used at accredited schools across the country.

Savings in a 529 plan grow free from federal and state income tax, and withdrawals remain tax-free when they are used for qualified education-related expenses at any accredited higher education institution in the country, including four-year universities, community colleges, and technical and vocational schools. The plans have no income limitations. 

Visit 529forcollege.org for more information about the For Their Future Movement. For more about the UA College Savings Plan, visit www.uacollegesavings.com.