USA Funds Staff Profile: Helping Customers, Supporting Education Access

David Root’s role as USA Funds^® director of customer relations allows him to combine two responsibilities that he enjoys: interacting with customers and supporting access to education.

Root joined USA Funds in 1988 as a customer-assistance representative and went on to hold various marketing positions. He was regional director of guarantor contract services for USA Group, USA Funds’ former parent company, and, later, for Sallie Mae, USA Funds’ guarantor-servicer.

At USA Funds Root now directs the activities of the team of customer-relations managers. The group works with campus financial-aid administrators to determine customer needs and monitor customer satisfaction with education-loan service, especially in the eight states in which USA Funds serves as the designated guarantor under the Federal Family Education Loan Program and in other key states. USA Funds is the designated guarantor in Arizona, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada and Wyoming.

“Our team helps make sure that customers get the service they need to do their jobs most efficiently,” Root says.

Root and his team also assist in identifying, developing and delivering value-added services, and in determining initiatives that USA Funds can support to advance its mission of supporting postsecondary-education preparation, access and success.

Root has worked to support school- and lender-customers throughout his career, but his strong focus on enhancing education access began in 2005, when he took his current position. He counts initiatives related to USA Funds’ mission among the projects about which he is most excited. He is a member of a recently formed USA Funds committee, convened by President and CEO Carl Dalstrom, that will work to encourage private-sector support for postsecondary education.

“This position allows me to assist school-customers as well as individuals in the community through our philanthropic and outreach initiatives,” says Root.

Root coaches his 11-year-old twin daughters' soccer team, he also has a 15-year-old daughter. Another activity that helps fill his free time is playing drums in a rock band that performs in approximately three shows each month in the Indianapolis area.