Ohio Dominican Misses Bond Payment

Ohio Dominican University failed to make a bond payment earlier this month, raising questions about the Catholic institution’s long-term financial stability, The Columbus Dispatch reported.

The university missed its payment on a $50 million bond issued in 2018, according to a regulatory filing, but officials told the newspaper that they are working with bondholders to address the outstanding debt. While missed bond payments have preceded other college closures and are often a sign of fiscal distress, university officials dismissed doubts about its future.

“There are no discussions about closing the university. Conversely, university trustees and administrators are working diligently to improve operational efficiency, streamline costs in a challenging market for universities nationwide, and assuring a strong path forward for ODU,” officials said in a statement to The Columbus Dispatch.

The missed payment comes as ODU has struggled to keep up with its debt in recent years. In February 2024, officials asked bondholders to waive a covenant due to concerns that the university might fall below the level of liquidity needed to meet debt service requirements, according to a publicly available transcript of the call between bondholders and ODU.

ODU has also struggled with enrollment in recent years. While bond documents show a head count of 1,139 students last fall, that number was down from 1,334 in fall 2021. Going back a decade, federal data shows the university enrolled more than 2,500 students in fall 2015.