2008 Woodie Awards
Endowment steadily increasing
Michelle Sartor
Issue date: 2/3/05 Section: News
Endowment at the College, which had dropped several years ago, has been increasing in value since 2002. Endowment is important because its funds can be used for general expenses at the College.
According to Kent Dyer, Chief Business Officer and Treasurer, the College's endowment is made up of gifts from donors.
These gifts are then invested. Any interest gained from the investments can be used for a variety of purposes such as hiring more faculty members and buying equipment.
Dyer said, "The bigger the endowment, the more things to draw off of and the more things you can afford."Not all the money in the endowment can be used for general purposes, however. Oftentimes donors give money to be used for student scholarships and other specific purposes.
Dyer said that of the average endowment over the past five years, five percent is taken out and used the way that the donors had intended.
As of Dec. 31, 2004, the College's endowment was $96.1 million. This number was up from Dec. 31, 2003, when the College had an endowment of $82.1 million. As of Dec. 31, 2002 there was an endowment of $66 million, which was down from Dec. 31, 2001, when the endowment was $77.6 million.
According to Dyer, the cause of the fluctuation with the endowment is caused by the investments. When the stock market and bonds increase in value, the endowment rises. If the stock market does not have a good year, the endowment will likely decrease.
The College does have policies in place to follow the trends of the market. Dyer said, "We can't predict the market, but we can look at trends to try to do the best possible investing for the school."
An outside consultant works with Dyer's office on the issue of investing. They look at the long term investments that will pay off in ten to 30 years.
Dyer said there are ups and downs and "we have to ride out those dips."
The Board of Trustees has a Finance and Investment Committee which passes investment policy. In the current policy, there is asset allocation, which determines what money can be spent where.
Endowment at similar colleges has also increased in the past year. In comparison to several other schools like Bucknell University and Gettysburg College, the College saw the highest increase in endowment of 21.5 percent from June 30, 2003 to June 30, 2004.
Of the schools to which the College is compared, however, the College had the lowest endowment of $88,236,000 on June 30, 2004. Lehigh University had the highest with $796,946,000. Dickinson College saw the lowest increase putting its endowment at $158,896,000.
According to Kent Dyer, Chief Business Officer and Treasurer, the College's endowment is made up of gifts from donors.
These gifts are then invested. Any interest gained from the investments can be used for a variety of purposes such as hiring more faculty members and buying equipment.
Dyer said, "The bigger the endowment, the more things to draw off of and the more things you can afford."Not all the money in the endowment can be used for general purposes, however. Oftentimes donors give money to be used for student scholarships and other specific purposes.
Dyer said that of the average endowment over the past five years, five percent is taken out and used the way that the donors had intended.
As of Dec. 31, 2004, the College's endowment was $96.1 million. This number was up from Dec. 31, 2003, when the College had an endowment of $82.1 million. As of Dec. 31, 2002 there was an endowment of $66 million, which was down from Dec. 31, 2001, when the endowment was $77.6 million.
According to Dyer, the cause of the fluctuation with the endowment is caused by the investments. When the stock market and bonds increase in value, the endowment rises. If the stock market does not have a good year, the endowment will likely decrease.
The College does have policies in place to follow the trends of the market. Dyer said, "We can't predict the market, but we can look at trends to try to do the best possible investing for the school."
An outside consultant works with Dyer's office on the issue of investing. They look at the long term investments that will pay off in ten to 30 years.
Dyer said there are ups and downs and "we have to ride out those dips."
The Board of Trustees has a Finance and Investment Committee which passes investment policy. In the current policy, there is asset allocation, which determines what money can be spent where.
Endowment at similar colleges has also increased in the past year. In comparison to several other schools like Bucknell University and Gettysburg College, the College saw the highest increase in endowment of 21.5 percent from June 30, 2003 to June 30, 2004.
Of the schools to which the College is compared, however, the College had the lowest endowment of $88,236,000 on June 30, 2004. Lehigh University had the highest with $796,946,000. Dickinson College saw the lowest increase putting its endowment at $158,896,000.