Higher education bonds

The University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy named former Chicago chief financial officer Lois Scott as the inaugural chair of the advisory board that oversees its expanding Center for Municipal Finance.

A second rating agency has dropped Chicago-based Roosevelt University into junk territory over as enrollment struggles and a heavy debt load strain its balance sheet.

Hofstra University received a one notch upgrade to A2 by Moody’s Investors Service.

A proposal to raise the Oklahoma sales tax by one cent would give teachers a raise if voters approve. The Sooner State ranks 49th among states in teacher pay, according to recent studies.

Princeton University’s settlement to end litigation claiming it should pay property taxes on certain Princeton, N.J. properties is a credit positive for both the school and the local government, according to Moody’s Investors Service.

A master plan approved by Rutgers University last year to expand and upgrade the infrastructure of New Jersey’s flagship public higher education institution by 2030 is already taking shape.

Vanderbilt University received an upgrade to triple-A ahead of its first foray into the bond market since separating financially from its medical center.

Michigan’s Wayne State University has struck a $1.4 billion, 40-year public-private partnership that will allow it bypass the capital markets to upgrade its housing stock and retire debt.

A Kentucky Supreme Court ruling that Gov. Matt Bevin does not have authority to withhold university funds is a credit negative, Moody's Investors Service said, because it will be harder to manage difficult budgets without help from lawmakers.

The University of Arkansas will join the college football stadium arms race with a $115 million bond issue for the Razorbacks’ home field.