Loan Portfolio

Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Enrollment: 544
Loan Amount: $7.3 million
School Savings: $2.7 million
School Site: www.rocketshipschools.org/schools/united-academy
Ratings Direct: Not Rated
Obligor Summary: Rocketship United Academy Obligor Summary

A member of the national Rocketship Public Schools network, Rocketship United Academy (RUA) launched in 2015 and serves 544 elementary school students from under-served neighborhoods in Nashville. The school strives to meet the unique needs of every student through a blend of traditional instruction, adaptive technology, targeted tutoring, and enrichment opportunities. In 2017-2018, RUA was named a Reward School by the Tennessee Department of Education, the state’s highest recognition for student performance and progress. Additionally, RUA ranked in the top 12% off all metro Nashville public schools.

ESRF provided a $7.3 million loan to finance the acquisition of the elementary school facility that RUA had previously leased from Turner Impact Capital. RUA locked in a 30-year fixed rate loan that will save the network $2.7 million over 30 years compared to projected lease payments.

“We were pleased to hear of the presence of a facilities lender in the industry that was offering a direct, long-term financing option other than what can be found on the bond market. The alternative at ESRF provided us a way to meet our long-term financing objectives with lower transaction costs than we could have otherwise obtained – translating to lower annual costs for our school, where more funds can remain in school programming and student services. The leadership and staff were a pleasure to work with, and we hope to partner with ESRF again for Rocketship’s financing needs across the country.”
– Laura Kozel, VP Capital Finance, Rocketship United Academy