July 23, 2012
--- South Carolina chose Columbia Management to be the program
manager of its college savings plan. ---
Columbia Management, which has partnered with the state since
2001, will continue to be the investment manager and distributor of the state’s
adviser-sold and direct-sold college savings plans. The contract expires in 2017.
“It is very important for families to have a simple and
efficient way to save for their children and grandchildren’s college
education,” said South Carolina Treasurer Curtis M. Loftis Jr. “There is
nothing more important than a quality education, and the Future Scholar 529 Plan
helps make college more accessible to the citizens of South Carolina.”
The Future Scholar 529 College Savings Plan offers three
investment options: age-based–corresponds with the child’s age and the parents’
risk tolerance over time; target-allocation–six target allocation portfolios
ranging from conservative to aggressive; and single-fund–variety of mutual funds
ranging from domestic and international equity funds to more conservative fixed-income funds.
The direct-sold Future Scholar program is available only to
South Carolina residents. The adviser-sold program is available nationally.
South Carolina’s 529 program has $1.5 billion in assets and 93,000 accounts as
of June 30. For more information, click here.
Jay Polansky