Investment-Grade Schooling

Liberty Common students and their school, in the entire realm of public education, are an excellent investment.  Last week, we received fabulous news in the complex process of forming up our strategy for financing the school’s considerable expansion needs.  The global investment-rating firm Standard & Poor’s gave us an investment-grade bond rating.   

 

This rather extraordinary declaration means the risk of investing in our school is low compared to other tax-exempt government-issued bonds.  From the investor’s point of view, it’s a solid bet Liberty will yield a profitable return.  From our perspective as borrowers, we can now borrow at cheaper interest rates.  In other words, we’ll pay much less to our lenders over the life of the bonds than we would have had we scored a less-favorable S&P rating. 

 

S&P’s investment-grade rating also makes Liberty eligible for Colorado’s “Moral Obligation Program,” a kind of state-backed safety net in the unlikely event the school defaults.  This added state assurance makes our school even more attractive to bond investors.   

 

All this good news truncates the timeline to buying the Aristotle campus which we’ve been renting.  In fact, our last and final rent payment was made days ago!  Soon into the new year, we’ll be making steady progress toward buying land and improvements for our standalone junior-high building, paying off our existing bonds from 2014 and 2015, and holding deeds to both elementary campuses, plus the high school. 

 

Oh, we’ll be deeper in debt for sure.  However, our financial position will be more elegantly structured to attract investors.  Liberty’s planning progress (see nearby photo) is illuminating a clearer pathway toward brighter futures for more Poudre School District students. 

 

Our supplications are unbroken for young LCS scholars – from the four winds, from the end of the earth to the end of the sky – to be wise and shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, to lead the many to justice and be like the stars forever.