For Press Release

Oxford, OH and Claremont, CA – January 2, 2003. Miami University’s Degree Audit Reporting System (DARS) and Interface Management Services, Inc. (IMS) announced today the formation of a joint effort aimed at improving the ability to effectively and seamlessly integrate the popular Miami University’s DARS, DARwin and CAS products to a broad variety of student administration systems.

The arrival of ERP solutions to university campuses is today a tangible reality as more and more higher education institutions move towards an integrated approach to the management of their student administration processes. However, they have not been able to consistently provide quality solutions to the wide variety of higher educational needs and requirements. An area that stands out is the degree audit functions. The Miami University solutions in this area are increasingly preferred over ERP modules that attempt to address the same requirements.

An organization that decides to maintain or incorporate DARS, DARwin and/or CAS as part of their ERP solution encounters the need for a seamless, streamlined integration. IMS Inc. brings the technology and ability to interface these products to minimize interface issues while simplifying the maintenance and monitoring of the information exchange.

DARS is a Degree Audit Reporting System developed at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and being used at more than 150 higher education institutions to address academic advising as well as final certification needs. These reports are generated and then offered on line, over the web and in hard copy media. DARS contains a very powerful transfer course articulation component that can include references to equivalent courses at other institutions that can be completed to fulfill degree requirements. DARwin is the equivalent to DARS for a client/server environment, and CAS is a web-based student transfer advising system based on a network of member institutions that provides degree and transfer information to students.

IMS is a technology solutions provider that has been offering strong technical and functional expertise to higher education and non-profit institutions for more than 20 years. IMS, in collaboration with the DARS/CAS team, are applying the latest interface technology to develop and implement seamless integration to and from the DARS/CAS systems, as well as sophisticated interface monitoring services. IMS brings its extensive ERP implementation and maintenance expertise in higher education to the partnership, therefore developing an interface that maximizes the administrative system’s capabilities and interfacing components to more effectively incorporate the DARS/CAS systems to the overall solution.

For more information on the DARS/CAS solutions call Jason Elwood at 513-529-5321, or visit the website at www.dars.muohio.edu. to learn more. about Interface Management Services, Inc., call 909-374-1150, and ask for Felipe Negritto, or visit the IMS web site at http://www.interfacemgmt.net