What's the Best Word?

STUDENT BODY FUND BANKRUPT is the headline Rita wants to use for her story in the school paper. When she takes the story for approval, Mr. Harrison rejects it, saying that while the student body fund is low, it can pay all its debts. By the end of the program, Rita and her friend Sally Ann discuss the right word, with the right denotation and connotation to get the message across. They come up with ""teetering"".