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Topic: Diversity
Commonfund’s Investments with Diverse Managers Continue to Grow
Commonfund continues to build exposure to diverse managers1 as a source of return and diversification for our clients. In 2024, we closed the year with allocations to 50 different diverse managers,...
Celebrating Native American Heritage Month: A Resource Guide
Commonfund, in conjunction with our Native American Heritage Month subcommittee, has created a resource guide to help all of us celebrate the contributions of Native Americans and Indigenous people...
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: A Resource Guide
National Hispanic Heritage Month (Spanish: Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana) is an annual celebration commemorating the history, contributions, and culture of U.S. Latino and Hispanic communities.
Policy Areas Impacting Endowments and Foundations Today
Commonfund Institute aims to lift up and provide insight into how significant policy developments may impact nonprofit institutional investors. In the prior article, we covered implications of the...
Key Takeaways from Commonfund’s 5th Annual Diverse Manager Day
On May 15th, 2024, Commonfund held its 5th annual Diverse Manager Day. While Commonfund investment teams meet with hundreds of diverse managers each year, this one day is dedicated to due diligence...
Celebrating Pride Month: A Resource Guide
Pride month is the promotion of the self-affirmation, dignity, equality and increased visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and asexual people (LGBTQIA+) as a social group....
A Closer Look at Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Earlier this year, in partnership with the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), Commonfund released the 2023 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments (NCSE),...
Celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month got its start as a congressional bill, inspired by Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage Month, with the mission of bringing attention to the...
Adding Alpha through Emerging Investment Managers
Commonfund Forum 2024 convened a panel of emerging investment managers to spotlight their unique investment approaches. Moderated by Caroline Greer, managing director at Commonfund OCIO, the...
The Role of the Endowment in Transforming Trinity College
Commonfund hosted its annual Commonfund Forum, March 10-12th, in Orlando, Florida. The agenda included a range of sessions on relevant topics for institutional investors. In this Forum Spotlight,...
Grain Management: Three Questions with David Grain
Commonfund OCIO Managing Director, Paul Von Steenburg, interviews David Grain, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Grain Management in this Commonfund Manager Spotlight.
Celebrating Black History Month: A Resource Guide
Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the...
Commonfund Announces 2024 Diverse Manager Day
Commonfund begins the New Year with the exciting prospect of continuing to build out our diverse manager commitments. In 2023, we hit a milestone, reaching 10.9 percent of assets under management...
Beyond DEI Toward Reparative Care - Commonfund Coffee Talk
Beyond DEI Toward Reparative Care The second session in our Commonfund Coffee Talk 2023 series, foundation leaders discuss how institutions can use their power, move beyond baseline DEI, and toward...
2023 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Report
It used to be, in the not-too-distant past, that a CEO could just focus on the four corners of her or his business plan without consideration for the broader societal impacts of that plan. Not so...
Affirmative Action: Implications for Endowments, Foundations, and the Broader Industry
Affirmative action, a practice used since the 1960s to edge toward equity and address historical and ongoing injustice through higher education attainment, was struck down last month by the Supreme...
Pregnant Worker Fairness Act (PWFA) – A New Baseline DEI Standard
Diversity, equity, and inclusion are priorities throughout the asset management industry and the broader nonprofit landscape. Worker support policies like paid leave are often available in business...
Celebrating Women's History Month
Women's History Month 2023 | Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories Women’s History Month is an annual declared month that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary...
Rising to the Occasion | A Discussion with Three HBCU Presidents
Earlier this month we hosted our 25th Commonfund Forum in Boca Raton, Florida. In celebration and acknowledgment of Black History Month, we hosted a breakfast discussion with a distinguished group of...
Diversity and Inclusion: Ways to Make a Change
Throughout American history, discrimination has not only been ever present, but era-defining. In each of those eras, however, there have been pivotal moments where activists organized, made...
Michael Torres Talks about Adelante Capital Management
Commonfund Managing Director, Paul Von Steenburg, interviews Michael Torres, Chief Executive Officer of Adelante Capital Management in this Commonfund Manager Spotlight.
Evolving Our Definition of Diverse Managers
Investing in diverse managers has evolved considerably over the last five years, catapulted by client demand, broad social concern over events such as the murders of George Floyd, as well as a...
Melissa Madzel, Managing Partner of Axis Talent Partners and Board Member of Stonewall Community Foundation
In celebration of Pride Month, Commonfund Institute Executive Director, George Suttles, interviews Melissa Madzel, Managing Partner of Axis Talent Partners and Board Member of Stonewall Community...
Diversity and Diversification: The People Edge in Portfolios
Can diverse people managing investment portfolios deliver an edge in performance? A growing body of research shows that diverse managers—defined by gender, race, ethnicity or other...
21st CASE Commonfund College and University Foundation Award
Since 2001, the CASE Commonfund College and University Foundation Award has recognized individuals who have contributed to the advancement of the college and university foundation field.
Teresa C. Younger, CEO, Ms. Foundation for Women
In celebration of Women’s History Month, Allison Kaspriske, Director, Commonfund Institute and Nicole Melwood, Director, Commonfund, interview Teresa Younger, President and CEO of the Ms. Foundation...
Metis Global Partners
In celebration of Black History Month, Commonfund Institute Executive Director, George Suttles, and Commonfund Director, Nicole Melwood, interview Machel Allen, President and CIO of Metis Global...
Commonfund's Third Annual Invitational Diverse Manager Day
From February 9th-11th, Commonfund held its third Diverse Manager Day event, with 20 managers identified through its Diverse Manager Portal and other sources. These diverse managers1 cover a broad...
Celebrating and Honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
On January 17, 2022, the nation will celebrate the legacy and leadership of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King—a graduate of Morehouse College—was a Baptist minister, a peace seeking civil...
Diversifying Foundation Boards
The call for private and community foundation boards to embrace and demonstrate diversity at the senior leadership and board level has never been more urgent. Yet, with a growing base of research...
A Message from our CEO - Advancing DEI at Commonfund
Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Report - A Message from our CEO For the past two years, we have been living in a digital world of Zoom, MS Teams, WebEx and other video formats. It has...
Viewpoint | Diverse Managers
The inclusion of diverse managers in institutional portfolios offers access to a broader array of investment talent. Data indicate that foundations are beginning to recognize and act on this...
How to Invest in Diverse Managers
A U.S. capitalist system where approximately one percent of all capital is managed by women and people of color, who make up 70 percent of the population, perpetuates and increases inequality and...
CASE Commonfund College and University Foundation Award 20th Anniversary
For the past 20 years, the CASE Commonfund College and University Foundation Award has recognized individuals who have contributed to the advancement of the college and university foundation field.
The CASE Commonfund College and University Foundation Award | Twenty Years of Celebrating Leadership
CASE Online Conference | General Session | March 30-31, 2021 Commonfund Institute Executive Director, George Suttles, joined past CASE Commonfund award recipients in a discussion celebrating twenty...
Commonfund Award Presentation and Leadership Discussion
Commonfund has been a partner and supporter of CASE for the past several decades. Our aligned missions of serving educational institutions and enhancing resources for ongoing financial success are...
Commonfund Trustee, Dr. David A. Thomas, Wins 62nd Annual HBR McKinsey Award
Commonfund's Trustee, Dr. David A. Thomas, wins the 62nd Annual HBR McKinsey Award, for co-authoring the article titled "Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case." The...
A Fireside Chat with Darren Walker | From Generosity to Justice
Forum 2021 keynote speaker and Ford Foundation President, Darren Walker, shares his bold vision for the future of philanthropy. Since his arrival in 2013, Mr. Walker has transformed the venerable...
Promoting Gender Equity in Leadership Roles
Dr. Kellie A. McElhaney is on faculty as a Distinguished Teaching Fellow and the Founding Director of the Center for Equity, Gender and Inclusion (EGAL) at the Haas School of Business at the...
From Generosity to Justice | Observations from the President of Ford Foundation
The theme for Commonfund Forum 2021 was “Transformation.” The objective of the agenda was to deliver timely, useful content on core subjects related to nonprofit endowment and financial management...
Stellex Capital Management
In celebration of Black History Month, Commonfund Institute Executive Director, George Suttles, and Commonfund Director, Nicole Melwood, interview Ray Whiteman, Managing Partner and co-Founder of...
Commonfund’s Second Invitational Diverse Manager Day
Earlier this month, Commonfund held its second invitational Diverse Manager Day with 19 managers identified through our Diverse Manager Portal. These diverse managers1 , from historically...
Marvin Owens, Senior Director, NAACP Economic Department
Founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the country, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is the largest and most pre-eminent...
Investing in Racial Equity: A Primer for University & College Endowments
Commonfund and Commonfund Institute are very happy to contribute to the new report from Intentional Endowments Network (IEN), “Investing in Racial Equity: A Primer for University & College...
Observations on Diverse Manager Selection Across Asset Classes
At Commonfund, we believe diverse managers offer clients access to investment talent and valuable investment opportunities and therefore should be explored and invested in. Overlooking the merits of...
In Remembrance
The senseless killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and most recently, George Floyd have once again brought the scourge of racism to the forefront of our nation’s conscience. For many Americans,...
Rochelle Witharana, Chief Financial Officer, California Wellness Foundation
With nearly $1 billion in assets, The California Wellness Foundation (Cal Wellness), is one of California’s largest public health philanthropic institutions.
DEI and Crisis Management: Staying the Course in Uncertain Times
The times we are living in are unprecedented. On March 11th, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the spread of COVID-19 constituted a global pandemic. Currently, in the U.S., the virus...
Ardent Venture Partners
Commonfund Board Member, Michael Warren, interviews Phil Bronner of Ardent Venture Partners.
Commonfund’s First Invitational Diverse Manager Day
On January 16th Commonfund held its first invitational Diverse Manager Day. The day was made possible as a result of the success we had from submissions to the Diverse Manager Portal launched last...
Dimple Abichandani, Executive Director of the General Service Foundation
Dimple Abichandani is Executive Director of the General Service Foundation (“GSF”), a private grantmaking family foundation that dedicates all its resources to bringing about a more just and...
Nonprofit Board Diversity = Effective Stewardship
Many institutions recognize the need for diversity and inclusion on their boards and investment committees. Diverse and inclusive boards can make more effective decisions, design and deliver...
Announcing the Commonfund Diverse Manager Portal
In the fall of 2018, Commonfund announced the creation of its Diversity and Inclusion Office with the mission to “intentionally promote and foster inclusion and equity across Commonfund and our...
Looking at Gender Lens Investing
What is Gender Lens Investing? Gender lens investing has garnered significant traction in the last decade. Broadly speaking, it aims to achieve financial returns and benefit women. Given the breadth...
Traits of High-performing Boards … and Steps Toward Becoming One
When this was published, Tom Hyatt was a partner in the Washington. D.C. law firm of Dentons US LLP and an authority on nonprofit governance. This blog is excerpted from a presentation he made at the...
Emerging and Diverse Manager Programs: Worth Doing Well
Michael Rowland was the Commonfund Institute Summer Intern in 2019. When this was published he was a rising senior at Case Western Reserve University majoring in Finance and Accounting. What are...
Commonfund Hosts Girls Who Invest at NYC Event
Girls Who Invest (GWI) is an organization focused on bringing more women into the field of asset management, a goal that Commonfund strongly supports. Every year, GWI invites rising juniors into...
The 5 Top Stewardship Imperatives
Christopher K. Merker, PhD, CFA, is a financial advisor and director of Private Asset Management at Robert W. Baird & Co. and an adjunct professor at Marquette University. He is also the co-author of...
Museums and Cultural Institutions: To Accept or Not to Accept, That Is the Question
In the last few months, high profile nonprofit institutions have come under intense scrutiny for ethical dilemmas pertaining to the stewardship of resources meant to support mission. In a three-part...
Dynamic Workforce = Dynamic Portfolios
The Surprising Outcomes When Diverse Groups and Homogeneous Groups Tackle the Same Problem In late 2018, Commonfund established a Diversity Office with the objective of benefiting from the strengths...
Applying the Endowment Model to Diversity and Inclusion
Commonfund recently launched a Diversity Office, a formal, cross departmental effort focused on diversity and inclusion. The mission of the Commonfund Diversity Office is to intentionally promote and...
Diversity and Emerging Managers
The benefits of diversity are widely recognized in the work place and among educational institutions and other nonprofits. Yet, the concept of investment management firms that are minority owned and...
Brightwood Capital Advisors
Commonfund's Caroline Greer interviews Sengal Selassie, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Brightwood Capital Advisors in this Commonfund Manager Spotlight.
Investing in Diversity
At Commonfund, we scour the globe to find investment managers that we believe have the ability to consistently produce excess returns (alpha) over and beyond their benchmark. But alpha alone is not...
Nonprofit Board Governance Best Practices
Since our founding in 1971, a core element of the Commonfund mission has been to provide insights on a broad range of governance, policy and investment challenges. An engaged governing board is...
How Does Board Structure Affect Performance?
The structure of a board has an important influence on its effectiveness, and being cognizant of these matters is essential to improving a board’s performance. In this article, we’ll discuss four...
What is ESG Investing?
Generally speaking, Environmental Social and Governance, or ESG for short, is used to describe a group of characteristics that can have a material impact on the long-term success of a company and,...
Evolving Challenges in Nonprofit Governance
Commonfund recently convened an expert panel moderated by Myra Drucker (standing, left), Chair of the Board, TrustedPeer Inc. and former chair of the Commonfund Board of Trustees. The roundtable...
ESG: Principles for Responsible Investment
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are a topic for active discussion in board rooms. Here’s an update on Commonfund’s thoughts and actions and how ESG may relate to you. In general,...
10-Point Fiduciary Checklist: Get Governance Right
Follow this checklist and you'll be on your way… For nonprofit organizations of all kinds, the regulatory and legislative landscape continues to become more rigorous—which should not come as a...