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Leon Botstein spoke of the endowment when I met him. Interestingly enough, the down economy has hurt Bard much less than other schools with larger endowments, for obvious reasons.
Also, you need to look at how the endowments at other schools are used. Many schools with large endowments use those funds largely for capital improvements and overhead, not for scholarships. Moreover, endowments are "money in the bank", to be used at some point down the road. Bard does not necessarily fully embrace the "rainy day" philosophy.
Bard uses their endowment more for scholarships, but Botstein strongly believes there should be no free ride; he believes everybody should have a financial stake in their education. It goes to his core belief that "trust fund babies" end up like Jenna Bush.
Bard College has been around since the mid-1800s, and has prospered and expanded, despite recessions and depressions. They've never been an endowment-rich school. You'll also find the food is considered poor, and the housing is.....dorm-like. It's not a restaurant; it's not a country club. But it's an amazing place that oozes intellectual curiosity from every pore.
Methinks it'll be around for your great-grandkids.
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