Vanguard Software to Donate $8 Million in Software to Academic Institutions

Academic Partnership Program Designed to Enrich Classroom Experiences and Faculty Research Opportunities

Cary, NC – November 10, 2006 – Vanguard Software has announced it will donate $8 million in software and services, over the next several years, to academic institutions worldwide through its Academic Partnership Program. Participating colleges, universities, and faculty will be able to integrate the Vanguard System™, an enterprise decision-analysis and collaborative modeling application, into their academic curricula and research activities in a size and scope that best serves their needs.

Vanguard Software will help institutions develop an effective Vanguard System integration that gives students in the classroom and assisting in research projects the most value-adding, dynamic experience possible. “Today’s most competitive companies are increasingly integrating advanced decision analysis tools into their businesses. As a result, their most successful employees will be the individuals who have a real grasp of decision analysis concepts and experience using sophisticated tools such as Vanguard System,” points out Brian Lewis, who has a doctorate in Operational Research, and is Vanguard Software's VP of Professional Services.

Citing the importance of assisting and forming partnerships with educational institutions and their faculty, Rob Suggs, CEO, explains, “It’s our goal, in this initiative, to provide students with a solid understanding of fundamental decision analysis concepts by giving them first-hand experience in using advanced decision analysis tools to solve real-world business problems.“ He adds, “Faculty members, with the assistance of their students, bring much needed research to the table. Their contributions to the business-world are invaluable.”

Vanguard Software is actively seeking faculty to join their Academic Partnership Program. Faculty members who are involved in research projects will be able to apply the Vanguard System to their current projects. They can publish models to Vanguard’s Global Knowledge Portal – a free-access, shared library of models used by analytical modelers and decision-makers around the world. And, as opportunities arise, Vanguard Software will invite participants to join in funded research and consulting projects as a means of furthering student experience in resolving real business problems.

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About Vanguard Software

Vanguard Software is a privately held corporation founded in 1995 to develop business Decision Support software. Customers in over 60 countries and in every major industry use Vanguard’s software for forecasting, resource optimization, Web-based expert systems, and financial modeling. For more information about Vanguard, visit http://www.vanguardsw.com/.