University of New Orleans bond rating upgraded by Moody’s Investors Service

Moody’s upgrades Univ. of New Orleans bond rating

NEW ORLEANS — The University of New Orleans is among 19 colleges and universities to have its bond rating upgraded in 2009, a year in which many higher education institutions have seen their bond ratings downgraded.

UNO was among seven colleges to be upgraded by Moody’s Investors Service this year, while Standard & Poor’s upgraded 12 institutions in the first three quarters of the year. The UNO bond rating was improved to A3, a low credit risk, from Baa1, a substantial credit risk.

Chancellor Timothy P. Ryan says the improved bond rating is a benchmark of the university’s successful recovery. UNO’s bond rating had been downgraded in 2006 because of the decrease in enrollment following Hurricane Katrina.