Furman’s Future: A Response to the Recent Downgrade in Furman’s Fitch Rating
I graduated from Furman University in 1968 and completed a master’s degree in chemistry there in 1970. I have loved Furman for the 61 years since I arrived on campus for the first time — alone, in a taxi, after a 28-hour bus ride from Miami to Greenville. Furman was a life-changing experience for me, and I will always be deeply grateful.
It is because of that gratitude that I write now — not to criticize from the sidelines, but to raise serious concerns about the direction of the institution I care so much about.
For several years, I’ve watched troubling trends take shape. The tipping point came last month, when Fitch Ratings changed Furman’s bond outlook from “Stable” to “Negative.” For those unfamiliar, bond ratings serve as an institution’s financial reputation in the eyes of investors. A negative outlook doesn’t mean bankruptcy, but it does signal that Furman’s current model is under real strain.