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Investment Strategy | Articles

Viewpoint | Top Concerns for Community Foundations: Donor-Advised Fund Regulations

Potential regulations on donor-advised funds (DAFs) and their effect on the philanthropic sector was the most-cited concern among community foundations in this year’s Council on...

Perspectives | Press Releases

FY23 NACUBO-Commonfund Study Released

U.S. Higher Education Endowments Report 7.7% Return for FY23 While Spending More in Support of Their Missions 50th anniversary NACUBO-Commonfund Study shows participating colleges and universities...

Governance And Policy | Videos

2025 Policy Outlook: What Endowments and Foundations Should Know

Looking back at 2024, uncertainty was the name of the game: inflation, interest rates, market volatility, emerging technology, recession potential, and geopolitical risks all played a role. As we...

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Perspectives | Insights Blog

Key Takeaways from the 2025 CASE Conference for College & University Foundations

Commonfund Institute provides analysis and thought leadership across the nonprofit institutional investing space. But investments don’t happen in a vacuum – they are part of the institutional...
Responsible Investing | Insights Blog

Fiduciaries Guide to Mission-Aligned Investing

At Commonfund Forum 2025, Caroline Greer, Managing Director, Commonfund OCIO and George Suttles, Executive Director, Commonfund Institute sat down with panelists, Margot Brandenburg, Senior Program...
Outsourced Cio | Insights Blog

Increased Use of OCIO for Independent Schools

Data from the 2024 Commonfund Benchmarks Study of Independent Schools (CSIS) show that schools across the size spectrum reported an increase in use of an outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO)...
Investment Strategy | Insights Blog

In Pursuit of Intergenerational Equity: Inflation is the Big Headwind

For all the differing goals and objectives laid out by colleges and universities for their endowments, one that is universally shared is intergenerational equity, or the concept that endowed...
Investment Strategy | Articles

Portfolio Construction in the Era of the Mag 7

How do you build your U.S. equities allocation when a handful of stocks account for more than half of the S&P 500’s return? The aptly named Magnificent 7 stocks (Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta...
Governance And Policy | Insights Blog

A Closer Look at Religious Independent Schools

Earlier this year, Commonfund Institute released the 20th annual Commonfund Benchmarks Study of Independent Schools (“CSIS” or the “Study”), reporting on key investment governance trends and insights...
Perspectives | Insights Blog

Four Challenges Impacting Nonprofits Today

Commonfund OCIO President and CEO, Tim Yates, sat down with panelists, Janine Anthony Bowen, Trustee of Georgia State University Foundation and Partner at BakerHostetler, Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar,...
Market Commentary | Podcasts

Commonfund OCIO Point of View

Episode 6 In this episode we cover our macro-economic outlook, discuss the U.S. stock market, on going news of new tariffs and inflation, as well as the likelihood of a recession. Lastly, we give our...
Governance And Policy | Insights Blog

A Closer Look at Community Colleges

Earlier this year, Commonfund, in partnership with the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), released the 2024 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments (NCSE). The...
Investment Strategy | Insights Blog

Investment Committees: Preparing for the Unforeseen

In the world of investing, crises are inevitable. Yet, many investment committees find themselves unprepared when these crises strike because they haven’t taken the necessary time to scenario plan....
Investment Strategy | Insights Blog

Reflections on the NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments 2024

Mid-February can be a challenging time of year. For sports fans, the lull between the end of the football season and the beginning of baseball season can feel like an eternity. For many, February...
Perspectives | Videos

The Seismic Shifts Impacting Nonprofits Today

Commonfund recently hosted its 27th annual Commonfund Forum, March 9th-11th, in Orlando, Florida. This Forum Spotlight explores the financial and operational implications of these major shifts,...