EDS to aid Pearson on student aid systems revamp

Under a new $116 million deal, EDS Corp. will provide the enterprise architecture and application integration for the Education Department’s upgrade of its student loan program. EDS won the subcontract for the Federal Student Aid Office’s Front End Business Integration from Pearson Government Solutions, which earlier this month won an $800 million contract to modernize Education’s loan systems [see ].As a subcontractor to the Arlington, Va., company, EDS will also create data strategies, develop software, do business process re-engineering and provide data capture services. The award from Pearson is valued at $6 million for the first year and $110 million if all nine one-year options are exercised.Through the integration initiative, Education wants to create a student-centric, Web-driven service delivery model. The department also wants to streamline the management and processing of aid applications, and the origination and disbursement of Pell grants and direct loans. Pearson will develop and run a system that weds services currently delivered through four separate contracts. The new program is meant to improve customer service by simplifying and integrating service delivery to loan recipients and the department’s aid partners, Education officials said.