Standard & Poor’s upgraded the University of Northern Iowa’s academic building revenue bonds one notch to A-plus in recognition of its strong state support. The school’s dormitory revenue bonds were affirmed at BBB-plus.
“In accordance with our enhanced criteria for rating government-related entities, the upgrade reflects our opinion that there is a 'moderately high’ likelihood that the state of Iowa would provide extraordinary support to the university in case of financial distress,” analyst Bianca Gaytan-Burrell wrote.
“The rating further reflects our expectation of UNI’s continued state operating appropriations, stable enrollment, and intensive management focus on business operations, including enrollment and the dormitory system,” she added.
The state carries an issuer rating of AAA from Standard & Poor’s. UNI is one of three state-supported universities in Iowa. Its main campus is located in north-central Iowa in Cedar Falls. It had a fall 2008 enrollment of 12,908.
