How did Columbia end up so poor?

dococtopi
Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:02:28 +0000

Columbia may have ended up being “so poor,” but explain why peer institutions with comparable longevity, size, and alumni are slashing operation budgets during the recession whereas Columbia actually had room to increase spending? (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/16/nyregion/16columbia.html) Albeit, it’s only by a fractional amount, and the school is still making large cutbacks, but maybe perhaps because Columbia’s endowment doesn’t compare to the likes of HYP, it can claim to be doing better off in this recession.

And according to the recent 6-page sensationalist article in Vanity Fair, perhaps Columbia is not as “completely ****ed” as Harvard is, what with their $36 billion endowment and all that just took a major hit that was larger than the whole of Columbia’s endowment. ([Nina Munk on Hard Times at Harvard | vanityfair.com](Nina Munk on Hard Times at Harvard | Vanity Fair))