VeriFacts Automotive Acquires Mentors At Work

Mark Claypool to Join VeriFacts Management Team

Newport Beach, CA, October 8, 2007 —VeriFacts Automotive, LLC has acquired the rights to Mentors At Work, LLC, the nationwide apprenticeship system for the automotive repair industry. As part of the deal, Mark Claypool, President of Mentors At Work, will become the new Vice President of Operations of VeriFacts Automotive. The Mentors At Work name will be retained and will become a division of VeriFacts. Claypool has nearly 25 years of workforce development experience.

“We are very excited about the opportunity we have to provide the industry with workforce development solutions through Mentors At Work,” said Farzam Afshar, Chief Executive Officer of VeriFacts. “Mark Claypool brings with him a wealth of experience and commitment and together we can offer our VeriFacts customers a full mentoring and coaching package.”

“Several influential people in the industry have told us of the synergies between our two companies and encouraged us to talk,” Claypool added. “After reviewing what we do and why, we agreed the industry would be best served by combining our passion for coaching employees, both new and experienced. My commitment to workforce development and training has been a life-long endeavor and this is a logical next step which I am honored to take.”

Mentors At Work was founded by Claypool in 2001 and works closely with shops to help them attract, train and retain the workers they’ll need in the future. The Mentors At Work apprenticeship system meets or exceeds all of the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training standards within the U.S. Department of Labor. As the new VeriFacts Vice President of Operations, Claypool will oversee the day-to-day affairs of both VeriFacts and the newly formed Mentors At Work division.

Claypool has served as the National Director of Development for SkillsUSA and is the current volunteer TeamUSA Leader for the WorldSkills Competition. Claypool has also been the Executive Director of the I-CAR Education Foundation, the National Auto Body Council, and was a co-founder of the Collision Industry Foundation. He received his Bachelors degree from the University of Illinois.