WILTON, CT, and WASHINGTON, DC, March 13, 2023 – Commonfund and the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) today announced they are collaborating on renowned research on higher education endowments for institutions and investment managers. The five-year partnership will include the annual development and publication of the NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments, the preeminent analysis of U.S. college and university endowment performance.
The 2023 Study of Endowments will mark the 50th annual report NACUBO has compiled, with various partners including Commonfund, on investment returns, asset allocations, and governance policies and practices across hundreds of U.S. and Canadian higher education institutions and affiliated foundations. The study will cover the responses submitted for FY23 and will be released in the first quarter of 2024.
“We are thrilled to renew our longstanding partnership with NACUBO for the publication of the FY23 Study of Endowments and other complementary projects. As our economic environment becomes increasingly dynamic and challenging to navigate, it’s important to understand how endowment management is evolving year over year and, with our research, enable institutions to make informed investment decisions that can further their missions and goals,” said Mark Anson, Commonfund’s CEO and CIO. “Commonfund’s dedication to the advancement of endowment investment knowledge is rooted in our founding origins, and we share NACUBO’s commitment to continue to innovate using the study to better serve the higher education community.”
With the annual Study of Endowments as a hallmark of the NACUBO-Commonfund partnership, the organizations also intend to build upon the findings to inform endowment management solutions—indicative of their collective, long history of supporting higher education institutions.
Lynne C. Schaefer, interim president and CEO of NACUBO, stated, “Through this partnership with Commonfund, NACUBO will combine our expertise as the leading voice of higher education business and finance with a partner that has a similar objective of supporting our member institutions as they fulfill their missions. We look forward to working alongside Commonfund for the 50th annual Study of Endowments and our future endeavors together.”
“Collaborating with NACUBO enhances our ability to provide members of the nonprofit community with investment research that supports their long-term success,” noted George Suttles, executive director of Commonfund Institute. “Within Commonfund Institute, we have long been steeped in the effort to analyze and provide resources for endowment management, particularly through our annual studies like the Commonfund Benchmarks Study of Independent Schools (CSIS), the Council on Foundations-Commonfund Study of Foundations (CCSF), and our Investment Stewardship Academy, a three-day residential learning program tailored for nonprofit fiduciaries and senior executives. We are excited to gain this prestigious opportunity to provide beneficial insights for future policies and objectives of higher education institutions.”
About NACUBO
Founded in 1962, the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) is a nonprofit professional organization representing chief administrative and financial officers at more than 1,700 colleges and universities across the country. NACUBO advances the economic vitality, business practices, and support of higher education institutions in pursuit of their missions. For more information, visit www.nacubo.org.
About Commonfund
Commonfund is a leading asset management firm that empowers educational institutions, foundations, pension funds, family offices, RIAs, and other sophisticated investors to achieve their most important goals. Through our Outsourced CIO business, we provide nonprofits access to world-class investment management solutions. Our CF Private Equity business provides access to private equity investments for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations seeking to diversify their portfolios with private investments. Our Commonfund Institute is among the nation’s most trusted sources for relevant, useful, and proprietary data, analytics, and best practices in financial management. All our businesses are united by a relentless commitment to investment performance matched by an equally relentless commitment to the values of trust, transparency, and ethical behavior that have inspired us since our founding more than fifty years ago. www.commonfund.org