Returns on college and university endowments averaged 19.2 percent in 2011, a rate closer to pre-recession levels than the past few years, Inside Higher Ed reported. Despite positive returns, colleges are still recovering from their losses during the recent recession. Last year's financial survey, conducted by The National Association of College and University Business Officers and Commonfund, found that both small and large endowments had similar rates of return, though the gap between large and small endowments increased from last year, according to Inside Higher Ed. Experts attribute this difference to the fact that large endowments invest heavily in "alternative strategies," such as private equity and hedge funds, and have more opportunity to invest in riskier, higher-return investments, according to Inside Higher Ed. Institutions are also keeping more cash on hand than usual to ensure liquidity in case of another financial crisis, Inside Higher Ed reported.
Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Helen Gurley Brown made a $30 million donation to Stanford's School of Engineering and Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism to create a new institute connecting both universities, The Stanford Daily reported on Tuesday. Brown made the donation in honor of her husband, David Brown, a film director who passed away in 2010 at the age of 93. The David and Helen Gurley Brown Institute for Media Innovation is designed to connect graduate and postgraduate fellows working in journalism in New York City with multimedia technology experts at Stanford, according to The Daily. Of the $30-million, $12 million will go to each of the schools to hire a director for the institute while $6 million will be allocated to building an addition to Columbia's journalism building, featuring a new, high-tech newsroom. In addition, the Brown Institute will give grants for graduate and postgraduate fellows, The Daily reported.
Pamela Gann, president of Claremont McKenna College, announced the resignation of a "senior administrator" on Monday, The Chronicle for Higher Education reported. The official admitted to reporting inflated SAT scores for the college's incoming freshmen beginning in 2005, averaging a 10-20 point increase for each student. The inflated numbers were reported to a number of different organizations, including the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. News and World Report. The misrepresented numbers could have an impact on Claremont McKenna's national rankings, U.S. News director Robert Morse told The Chronicle. Claremont McKenna has not released the name of the official, but there is strong evidence to suggest that the offending official was Richard Vos, former vice president of the college and dean of admissions and financial aid, The Chronicle reported.
