ROBERT MORRIS COLLEGE ADOPTS SPSS DM CERTIFICATE PROG

To better prepare continuing education students for today's technologyoriented business environment, Robert Morris College (RMC) has joined SPSS Inc to offer the Data Mining Certificate program (DMCP) to the public. The DMCP curriculum, offered through RMC's Corporate Training Institute, is founded on the CRoss Industry Standard Process for Data Mining (CRISP-DM) methodology, and teaches the critical skills necessary to conduct successful data mining initiatives. The curriculum features practical hands-on training using SPSS' Clementine software. It will be the first DMCP to be offered in Illinois.

"We created the DMCP to give more individuals access to the skills today's business world requires," said Dr. John Woods, SPSS education alliance coordinator. "Data mining is essential to conducting one-to-one marketing -- the crux of e-commerce. By teaching data mining skills, the program gives companies a competitive edge and answers the increasing need for analytically trained employees."

"Robert Morris College is pleased to be the first in Illinois to offer the Data Mining Certificate Program," said Deb Dahlen, RMC senior vice president for academics. "Our partnership with SPSS enables us to provide leading-edge analytical skills for companies that wish to maximize knowledge management. This fast-market demands the competitive advantage corporations can acquire through such a program."

The program is scheduled to be offered at the College's various campus sites throughout Illinois including Naperville, Bensenville, Orland Park, Springfield and Peoria, in addition to onsite at the Great Lakes Naval Training Base in Great Lakes, Ill.

Using a variety of SPSS software products, including Clementine, the certificate program features data mining applications in manufacturing, health care, higher education and insurance/financial services industries, attracting participants from those and other industries as well as students of business and IT programs.

The objective of the DMCP is to establish national competencies in data mining. The certification offers employers assurance that those completing course and lab work from a college or university involved in the DMCP have been trained in the necessary data mining skills established by the industry standard CRISP-DM methodology. In addition to the strong focus on a data mining methodology, participants will receive instruction and evaluation in data analysis as well as in-depth software training. Upon completion of the CRISP-DM assessment and three application/software certificates, participants will be awarded a continuing education certificate recognizing them as a "Certified Data Mining Professional."

About CRISP-DM

CRISP-DM is a comprehensive data mining methodology and process model created by a consortium of industry experts. The CRISP-DM model makes large data mining projects faster, more efficient and less costly by enabling users to take advantage of an already-proven process. It offers step-by-step direction, tasks and objectives for every stage of the process, including business understanding, data understanding, data preparation, modeling, evaluation and deployment. CRISP-DM began as a European Commission-funded project for defining a standard process model for carrying out data mining projects. SPSS Inc joined NCR, DaimlerChrysler and OHRA on the initiative in January 1999, after acquiring consortium member Integral Solutions Limited.

About SPSS

SPSS Inc provides solutions that discover what customers want and predict what they will do. The company delivers solutions at the intersection of customer relationship management and business intelligence that enable its customers to interact with their customers more profitably. SPSS' solutions integrate and analyze marketing, customer and operational data in key vertical markets worldwide including: telecommunications, health care, banking, finance, insurance, manufacturing, retail, consumer packaged goods, market research and the public sector.

Headquartered in Chicago, SPSS has more than 40 offices, over 900 employees and 1999 revenues of $141.9 million. The company also has won the following awards: No. 70 on Forbes 1999 list of the "200 best small companies" and as the 22nd most profitable company on the Nasdaq exchange by Equities magazine; 1999 World Class Solution award in business intelligence and named "best decision support system for business intelligence" in the 1999 RealWare award competition; No. 14 in DM Review's 1999 Data Warehouse Top 100; placed No. 23 on the 1999 Soft-letter 100, a ranking of the top 100 personal computer software companies in the United States; and No. 97 in the 1999 Software 500, a ranking of the world's largest software vendors by Software Magazine. For more information, visit www.spss.com.

About Robert Morris College

The Corporate Training Institute division of Robert Morris College was created to provide continuing education opportunities for employers in the workplace. Specialized corporate training as well as custom designed programs in business administration, computer technology, graphic arts and allied health can be delivered conveniently on corporate sites. Robert Morris College is a baccalaureate degree-granting institution, accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The college serves over 5400 students who are interested in getting an education that meets the demands of today's business, graphic arts, healthcare and technical world at seven locations in Illinois. For more information about the Data Mining Program or the Corporate Training Institute, call 1-800-762-5960 or visit RMC's Web site at www.rmcil.edu.

Contact SPSS, Susan Kalell 800-525-4980 pr@spss.com.