Vanguard Academy
Financing supports campus expansion and facility improvements across South Texas
The Financing
Baird secured approximately $101.4 million in bond financing for Vanguard Academy to finance and refinance the costs of acquiring, constructing, equipping and renovating educational facilities across multiple campuses in the Rio Grande Valley Area of South Texas. Proceeds support construction of a new Monet Campus, expansion of the Van Gogh Campus, facility improvements at the Mozart Campus and enhancements to Vanguard's Central Administration and Beethoven facilities.
The bonds carried ratings of AAA/Aaa through the use of the Texas Permanent School Fund Guarantee and Baa2 on an underlying basis from Moody's. This pricing finalized just before a significant “selloff” in municipal bonds and on the first day of significant movement higher in yield to industry benchmark. There was very strong demand from investors during the order (sales) period with a challenging market backdrop. MMD reads (which is the benchmark) worsened as the day went on and the Baird underwriting desk worked hard to balance finding the appropriate reprice level amidst a sliding market. In the end, Baird was successful in obtaining a 4 basis point (bp) and 7bp adjustment lower in yield on the final two term bonds in the face of MMD cutting 8bps. A number of investors “dropped” on the reprice but enough remained to make a successful underwriting. In total, 22 different investors participated in the final order book.
The Project
The financing supports a series of capital projects designed to expand and modernize Vanguard Academy's educational facilities throughout the Rio Grande Valley. The largest project includes construction of a new 99,963-square-foot Monet Campus in Mission, Texas, which will replace the existing leased facility and serve students in grades PK3-8 with capacity for approximately 1,188 students. Additional projects include expansion of the Van Gogh Campus through construction of an 84,301-square-foot Early College High School facility serving grades 6-12.
Bond proceeds also support completion of the Early Childhood Center and additional facility enhancements at the Mozart Campus, including a new gymnasium, soccer field and related improvements, as well as improvements to the Central Administration facility and athletic facility enhancements at the Beethoven Campus. Collectively, the projects expand instructional capacity, modernize existing facilities and support Vanguard's plans for continued enrollment growth throughout the Rio Grande Valley.
Vanguard Academy
Founded in 2000, Vanguard Academy is a Texas nonprofit corporation that has operated open-enrollment charter schools since 2001. Vanguard Academy currently operates eleven schools across six campuses serving approximately 6,758 students in grades PK3-12 throughout the Rio Grande Valley, including Pharr, Edinburg, Mission and Alamo, Texas. Vanguard is currently the second-largest charter district in South Texas and is authorized to serve up to 12,000 students under its charter.
Vanguard's educational model focuses on college and career readiness, multilingual and dual-language education, career and technical education pathways and fine arts programming. Vanguard earned an "A" accountability rating from the Texas Education Agency for the 2025-26 school year and continues to advance its mission of preparing students to excel in college, career and beyond.
