Iowa Wesleyan reassesses new future as the determined campus and potential partner cut ties – The Gazette
A year after announcing the future of one of Iowa’s oldest higher education institutions was imminently dire, Iowa Wesleyan University has abandoned plans to save itself by partnering with a Catholic school based in Florida.
Though the Mount Pleasant university said in late 2018 it might not have enough money for even one more semester, it is on better financial footing now and has at least some breathing room to look again for another partner.
Administrators with Iowa Wesleyan and Saint Leo University in St. Leo, Fla., halted their pursuit of a partnership after a monthslong due diligence process revealed issues for both sides, according to Iowa Wesleyan President Christine Plunkett.
Saint Leo was wary of Wesleyan’s significant debt, and asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development Office to forgive some of what the university owes it on a $21.4 million loan — a request the USDA denied, Plunkett said.