Concerns About Debt Hover Over a Small College in Iowa

By just about every objective measure, the $88-million in debt that Wartburg College has carried since late 2005 poses a risk.

The college's debt load — twice the amount that it takes in annually from tuition and other revenue — has raised red flags with its accreditor, alarmed some faculty members, and left Wartburg with a credit rating just one notch above "junk."

It has also created some tensions with the citizens of Waverly, in northeastern Iowa, where

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