<p>^^^Oh, I understand. :p</p>
<p>In answer to your question, though, it hasn’t changed that much: up about $10 million last April (using the Wiki figure of $523 million as a base): <a href=“http://frontpage.wesleyan.edu/finance/financeDept/budget/2010_11BudgetReport.pdf[/url]”>http://frontpage.wesleyan.edu/finance/financeDept/budget/2010_11BudgetReport.pdf</a></p>
<p>down $20 million the following June which was the end of the fiscal year: <a href=“http://www.wesleyan.edu/finance/financeDept/reporting/Annual%20Financial%20Reports/2009-2010.pdf[/url]”>http://www.wesleyan.edu/finance/financeDept/reporting/Annual%20Financial%20Reports/2009-2010.pdf</a></p>
<p>One reason the endowment hasn’t fluctuated much is because nowadays only about 20% the endowment is invested in traditional, market-traded instruments like stocks and bonds that move daily in price. The rest is invested in private equity with varying degrees of risk and liquidity; fully half is invested in so-called Level 3 assets which by definition have no readily available market data and are instead subject to complicated accounting standards in order to arrive at their fair market value at any given time. </p>
<p>This is one reason why Wesleyan would prefer not to rely on the endowment for more than 20% of its operating budget at any given time; it insulates the university from the sudden demands of the private investment community and maixmizes the ability of fund managers to respond to opportunites which may arise.</p>