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SCIENTIFIC LEARNING REACHES AGREEMENT WITH WHITE HAT
Oakland, Calif., August 18, 2004 - Scientific Learning Corporation (NASDAQ: SCIL) has signed an agreement with White Hat Management, one of the country's largest Educational Service Providers, to bring its Fast ForWord(R) family of reading intervention products to a total of 14 Ohio charter-school sites in September.
This marks Scientific Learning's largest contract to date with an Educational Service Provider (ESP), which provides management services for charter schools. White Hat is the largest charter-school operator in the state of Ohio and the fourth-largest ESP in the country.
The Fast ForWord products, which complement and enhance reading instruction, were investigated by White Hat in a four-school pilot study between February and June 2004. Based on promising observations at these sites, White Hat CEO Mark F. Thimmig decided to expand the use of Fast ForWord to an additional 10 schools.
"We are constantly looking for ways to deliver exceptional educational results and to best serve our dynamic and growing student population," said Thimmig. "We believe that Scientific Learning has a unique and proven approach that can help develop and rebuild reading competency by addressing students' skills at the most fundamental levels."
"White Hat is committed to using innovative methods to better the lives of thousands of students, and we're happy that Fast ForWord will be an expanded component of these initiatives," said Robert C. Bowen, Chairman and CEO of Scientific Learning. "Fast ForWord will help the students served by White Hat build the cognitive skills needed to read and learn effectively."
About charter schools
Charter schools are independent public schools that are allowed by a
"charter," or contract, granted by the state in which they operate. They
are not bound by many of the regulations that govern traditional public
schools. Instead, the focus is on obtaining academic results, for which
they are held accountable. Charter schools are publicly funded, free,
and open to all students. Forty-one states plus the District of Columbia
allow charters, and the 2003 National Charter School Directory lists a
total of 2,695 charter schools across the United States.
About White Hat
White Hat Management is among the premier Educational Service Providers
in the United States and offers education management and school
operation services, including general operations management, human
resources, financial reporting, and student data reporting to state
education authorities. It is the fourth-largest charter school operator
in the United States; in the 2004-2005 school year, White Hat will serve
nearly 20,000 students in 40 schools across Ohio and in the cities of
Phoenix, Detroit, Pontiac (Michigan), Denver, and Colorado Springs. For
more information about White Hat Management, visit
www.whitehatmgmt.com
or call 800-525-7967.
About Scientific Learning Corporation
Scientific Learning produces the patented Fast ForWord family of
products, a series of computer-delivered reading intervention products
that complement core reading instruction. Based on more than 30 years of
neuroscience and cognitive research, Fast ForWord products help
children, adolescents, and adults build the cognitive skills critical
for improving reading and language skills.
The exercises align with the scientifically based reading-research guidelines and the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act. The efficacy of the products has been confirmed by independent researchers, by evaluating the results of standardized achievement tests, and by Scientific Learning's scientists.
For more information about Scientific Learning and its products, visit our Web sites at www.scientificlearning.com and www.brainconnection.com, or call 888-452-7323.