How did Columbia end up so poor?

cowboydan
Wed, 29 Jul 2009 13:34:03 +0000

yeah i was wondering about that too and found this:

Why is Columbia’s endowment so much less than that of our peer institutions?

Through much of the 20th century, Columbia’s assets were concentrated in Manhattan real estate, mostly in the land beneath Rockefeller Center, which was sold in 1985. The annual return on this property—fixed by long-term leases—provided a less competitive return than the managed investment portfolios of our peers.

The University also historically relied upon a small circle of donors for fundraising needs rather than cultivating a broad base of alumni. The Columbia College Fund, for example, started in 1953, years after other college funds (cf. Yale 1890, Harvard 1925); the first University-wide capital campaign was not realized until the 1980s.

Endowment-building is obviously a long-term process, but a concerted effort to build Columbia’s endowment today will help solidify the University’s future.

[Giving to Columbia University: FAQs: Endowment](http://giving.columbia.edu/faqs/endowment.html#endowment_income)