Kaplan Acquires Achieva, Expanding Company's Reach Into K-12 Markets

NEW YORK, JANUARY 14, 2002 -- Just one week after President Bush's education bill made testing a centerpiece of American education, Kaplan, Inc., a leading provider of education services for individuals, schools and businesses, has acquired the assets of Achieva, the San Mateo, CA.-based company that specializes in online tools to help students in grades 6-12 improve study skills and standardized test performance.

Achieva was founded as a brick and mortar college preparation business by former McKinsey & Company consultant, Carlos Watson. Achieva quickly entered the online marketplace by offering its study skills, test prep and college planning product line directly to consumers. Over the past 15 months, Achieva has worked with 75 school districts in 22 states, in markets such as New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Miami and Detroit. Watson and key members of Achieva's management team will join Kaplan, with Watson serving as Vice President, K12 Online Programs.

"Kaplan's superior brand, quality, content and commitment to students is a natural fit for our business," said Carlos Watson, CEO of Achieva.

The acquisition signals Kaplan's increased prominence in the K-12 marketplace, where Kaplan K12 Learning Services already offers professional development tools, curricular materials and test-readiness materials to over 800 schools nationwide.

"Achieva's well-articulated online courses broaden our company's ability to serve students' differing learning styles, consistent with our efforts to assist schools in raising standards for all students," said Dr. Marc F. Bernstein, President of Kaplan K12.

The recent passage of the Bush Education bill requiring annual testing for students is expected to increase demand for services in the K-12 marketplace. Kaplan's SCORE! unit, which offers after-school learning centers, is also expected to benefit from the Bush bill's publicly-financed tutoring initiative. SCORE's 150 centers nationwide help children build academic skills and confidence in a motivating environment.

Kaplan has grown from $80 million in revenue in 1994 to $494 million in 2001. Kaplan (www.kaplan.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Kaplan offers: Test prep and admissions services in centers and online at www.kaptest.com; after-school learning programs for kids and one-on-one tutoring for high school students through SCORE! Learning, Inc. (www.escore.com); on-site education and professional development at schools; books, software, and magazines; professional training and compliance tracking through Kaplan Professional (www.kaplanprofessional.com); bachelor and associate degrees, certificate and diploma programs via online, distance and traditional classroom-based programs through The Kaplan Colleges (www.kaplancollege.edu), which includes Concord Law School, the nation's first online law school, (www.concordlawschool.com), Kaplan College and College for Professional Studies; and Quest Education, a leading provider of post-secondary education offering bachelor and associate degrees and diploma programs in schools across the U.S. (www.questeducation.com). Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO). Kaplan, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE:WPO)

Press Contacts:

Liz Lindley
voice: 212-492-5890
e-mail: liz_lindley@kaplan.com

Bonnie Morris
voice: 212-974-6233
e-mail: bonnie_morris@kaplan.com

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