IU’s endowment market value surpasses goal

The IU Foundation recently broke its benchmark endowment earnings for the fiscal year, which earned 21.5 percent and took IU’s endowment market value to $1.6 billion, according to a press release. The IU Foundation has also been ranked 15th in the country in university endowment market value, said Barbara Coffman of the IU Foundation, which manages the University’s endowment. \nIU’s endowment provides scholarships, fellowships, equipment, research funds and other support for IU students, faculty and programs. \nEach donor decides where their investment goes, Coffman said. She added the endowment has about \n5,000 accounts. \n“It is to the credit of our excellent Investment Committee of the Foundation’s Board of Directors and the IUF staff that our invested funds continue to beat the benchmarks,” said Curt Simic , president of the IU Foundation, in a press release. \nThe endowment process works by distributing a portion of the earnings to the benefiting IU department or program. Managers’ fees are paid, and the remaining earnings are invested to ensure that the principal continues to grow, Coffman said. \n“We (the foundation) have to make 9 percent to maintain the purchasing power of the endowment,” \nsaid Coffman. \nThe idea is to have enough money invested so that in time the University can benefit from the donors’ generosity, she said. \n“Our directors have hired managers and adopted strategies that have enabled us to grow IU’s investment funds over time,” said Gary Stratten, vice president and chief investment officer at the IU Foundation, in a \npress release. \nThe goal of the foundation is to balance out any ups and downs in the market, and to provide a more consistent and growing income stream to IU departments and programs, Stratten said. \n“Donors love to make these gifts because they do go on forever,” \nCoffman said. \nWhen donors believe in higher education and in IU, it is a way for them to leave a legacy, Coffman said. Anyone can be a donor to the Foundation, whether they are IU alumni or not. She added that often time corporations and foundations will invest and \nbecome donors. \n“Our donors can feel confident that their gifts for IU are being handled wisely by the IU Foundation,” Simic in the press release.