7.10.2007 - 10:15am ET

(CSRwire) DENVER, CO/UPPER SADDLE RIVER, NJ.- July 10, 2007 – The Education Commission of the States (ECS) is honoring Pearson with this year’s ECS Corporate Award, which recognizes sustained commitment to, and substantial investment in, improving public education. Pearson is the first education company to receive the ECS Corporate Award.

The award will be presented by Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, ECS' 2006-08 chair, on July 11 in Philadelphia, Pa., as part of the ECS 2007 National Forum on Education Policy. Mark Nieker, president of the Pearson Foundation, and Jeff Taylor, president of Pearson, Inc., will accept the award on behalf of Pearson at the plenary lunch session.

The ECS National Forum is the premier event for state policymakers and education leaders to share ideas and discuss problems and solutions to the most pressing education issues. To see the detailed agenda for the National Forum on Education Policy, go to www.ecs.org/NF2007.

Pearson is actively involved in corporate giving, supporting education-focused projects in classrooms and in communities worldwide. The Pearson Foundation – the philanthropic arm of Pearson plc – extends Pearson’s commitment to education in partnership with nonprofit and public interest organizations. In 2006, Pearson donated more than $7 million to such projects, working together with leading businesses and civic organizations to support students and teachers, and to sponsor community-based education programs across the globe.

Pearson businesses also sponsor local education initiatives, providing additional support such as employees’ time, advertising space, publishing expertise, and books.

"Helping people learn is behind everything we do," said Nieker. "For us, the business of education encompasses reaching out to others, supporting projects in local communities, and making a difference whenever we can. Everyone at Pearson shares ECS’ desire to find lasting, scalable solutions to our nation’s most pressing education issues."

"ECS is honored to present this award to a company that so clearly exemplifies the sustained corporate commitment to American education across all levels of the system," said Roderick G. W. Chu, ECS’ interim president.

Previous recipients of the ECS Corporate Award include: Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), Hewlett Packard Company, MBNA Corporation, Intel Corporation, Washington Mutual, State Farm Insurance Companies, and MetLife and MetLife Foundation.

About ECS

The Education Commission of the States (ECS) is a nationwide nonprofit organization created by the states, territories and the U.S. Congress that helps governors, legislators, state education officials and others identify, develop and implement public policies to improve student learning at all levels. A nonpartisan organization, ECS was formed in 1965 and is located in Denver, Colorado.

About Pearson

Pearson plc (NYSE: PSO) is an international education and information company. Its major business operations are: Pearson Education, the world’s leading education business, which helps teachers teach and students learn at every stage and in every part of the world; The Financial Times Group, which has an international network of business and financial newspapers and online services that are read by millions of business executives and investors every day; and Penguin Group, which is one of the pre-eminent names in consumer publishing, with an unrivalled range of fiction and non-fiction, bestsellers, and classic titles. For more information, visit www.pearson.com.

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