DBRS Rates Illinois Student Assistance Commission, Series 2009

On May 28, 2009, DBRS assigned a ‘AA’ rating to the $50 million Student Loan Revenue Bonds, Series 2009 (the “Bonds”) issued by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission.

The rating of the notes is based on the credit quality of Assured Guaranty Corp., which guarantees the scheduled payment of principal and interest on the Bonds when due under a financial guaranty insurance policy. The Bonds are also supported by guarantee legislation passed by the State of Illinois (the “State”), which constitutes a general obligation of the State, in which and the full, faith, credit and resources of the State are irrevocably pledged for the punctual payment of the principal of and interest on the Bonds, when due.

Interest on the Bonds is payable semiannually on May 1 and November 1 of each year at a fixed rate of 3.15%.

The collateral for the Bonds consists of a pool of loans originated under the Federal Family Education Loan Program (the “FFELP”), which are guaranteed for at least 97% of defaulted principal and accrued interest by eligible guarantors and reinsured by the U.S. Department of Education (the ED). The trust is initially collateralized at 104%, by virtue of a Debt Service Reserve Fund fully funded at closing in an amount equal to 4% of the aggregate principal amount of the Bonds outstanding.

Note: All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.

The applicable methodology is FFELP Student Loan ABS Criteria.