Fifty one West Virginia investment professionals have been named to the fifteenth annual SMART529 Honor Roll for encouraging families to save for higher education.

“West Virginia’s financial advisors play a valuable role in helping many families prepare for future costs associated with college,” said State Treasurer John Perdue, who serves as chairman of the SMART529 program’s governing board. “Our SMART529 Honor Roll recognizes those who have excelled in spreading the word on the advantages of the state’s SMART529 college savings plan.”

Financial advisors named to the 2017 SMART529 Honor Roll were rated on both the number of new accounts opened and total dollars invested in the SMART529 program.

Investment professional receiving the 2017 award include:

State residents have the option of opening SMART529 college savings accounts either directly with the program or through investment professionals located in banks, investment firms and other financial service businesses throughout West Virginia.

SMART529 is a program of the West Virginia College Prepaid Tuition and Savings Program Board of Trustees. At the end of December, the SMART529 college savings plans had more than 130,000 accounts with investments totaling over $2.5 billion. West Virginia’s SMART529 program is open to investors nationwide.

SMART529 college savings plans are issued by the West Virginia College Prepaid Tuition and Savings Program Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees has selected The Hartford Life Insurance Company to administer its college savings program.

West Virginia offers special state tax incentives for West Virginia taxpayers who invest in SMART529. Before opening or contributing to an account, if investors or their designated beneficiaries are residents of states other than West Virginia, investors should compare the other state’s qualified tuition program and any state tax or other benefits that may provide.

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses associated with SMART529 before investing. This and other information are provided in the Offering Statements for the SMART529 college savings plans and in the prospectuses or other disclosure documents for the Underlying Funds, which can be obtained by calling 866-574-3542. The Offering Statements should be read carefully before opening an account or sending money.