Endowment Report May 2014
The Endowment by the Numbers
1,073 793
17
$110m
Endowed Funds
Endowed Chairs or Professorships
Market Value
Endowed Scholarship Funds
uri foundation endowment Overview This report has been prepared to provide our endowment stewards, many of whom are also endowment donors, and others, with performance and investment related information
29% Alumni
about the University’s overall endowment
45%
Corporations/ Foundations
portfolio. The University endowment is made up
16%
of a pool of over 1,000 individual endowment funds, each established through the generosity of donors, including URI alumni and friends. Each fund has been established with a donor-specified purpose, and each has been prudently invested in order to preserve its principal value over time,
10%
Other
Friends
Sources of Support
while generating earnings that are being used to make a meaningful impact at URI for this and future generations of students.
Supporting URI and the Endowment The URI Foundation, on behalf of the University
The portion of funds distributed from the
of Rhode Island, secures and encourages
investment of the entire pool of endowed funds
endowment gifts from alumni, corporations and
— or the General Endowment Fund (GEF) —
foundations, friends and other supporters of the
and contributed to the University each year is
University as a means of ensuring that a legacy of
a very important piece of the overall impact of
support for URI students, faculty and programs
charitable giving at URI. Last year (fy 2013), a
will continue and grow in perpetuity.
combined $11 million in direct expendable gifts and distributed endowment earnings
Endowment Support
was made available to support the students,
34% Endowment Support 66% Direct/Expendable Gifts
faculty and programs of the University of Rhode Island. Additional gifts totaling ap proximately $4.3 million were made to provide further support to the endowment. As a valued contributor to and/or steward of an endowment fund at the University of Rhode Island, you are helping to support the University’s
More than 11,000 donors made gifts to the University of Rhode Island during fy 2013. Approximately 34 percent of those gifts were directed to provide endowment support.
mission, goals and successes. As a partner in our
Endowment gifts are differentiated from
progress, we are pleased to share with you, this
immediately expendable gifts, as they become
detailed performance report on the GEF.
long-term investments which, through the
stewardship report may 2014 earnings they generate, provide financial stability
If the principal value of the General Endowment
and consistent support over time and allow the
Fund (GEF) grows at or above the rate of inflation,
University to be less dependent on other sources of
an increasing stream of income will be generated
revenue, including state appropriations. The level
to meet the rising costs of education, to support
of state support to URI last year was 8 percent.
faculty and programs and to provide opportunities to our students, both undergraduate and graduate. Currently, 75 percent of all URI undergraduates receive some form of financial aid.
Students receiving financial aid: 75%
State Support
1999:
23%
2007:
17%
2013:
08%
The primary objective of the endowment is to support the long-term needs of the University by maintaining a strong and healthy endowment and by growing the inflation-adjusted value of the assets over time by investing a portion of the endowment’s earning and appreciation back
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into the fund each year. This principal growth is intended to help offset the negative implications of rising inflation and dips in the business cycle over time.
Investment Performance The GEF’s performance is calculated on a total return basis, which, for purposes of this report, represents the combination of income,
Endowment Gifts to URI by Purpose
53% Scholarships 04% Building and Equipment 09% Chairs and Professorships 26% Academic and Program Support 08% Other
dividends, and gains and losses for the time period reported, net of investment management fees and distributions made from the GEF. The value of the GEF, which includes all individual endowed funds, was $110 million as of December 31, 2013. The annualized return on the portfolio, as of December 31, 2013, was 13.1 percent.
Annual Distribution of Earnings
$4.0
The payout from the investment of the GEF to the University varies each year, based on both
$3.0
endowment value and the spending policy, adopted by the URI Foundation Executive Board,
$2.0
3.4
3.0 2.5
2.7
2.9
2013
2014
for that given year. For use in the upcoming academic year, 2014/2015, $3.4 million will be distributed to support donor specified purposes. The payouts distributed for use for the upcoming and previous four academic years are as shown at right. Note: for new funds, the first award for endowed scholarships is available the first
$1.0
$0 2011
2012
2015
Annual Endowment Distribution
occurring fall semester 12 months from the date
in millions
of fulfilling the minimum fund value.
Uri Foundation Spending Policy
Conclusion
The FY 2015 spending rate is 4.7 percent — recently
The benefits of endowment gifts are felt far and
raised from 4.5 percent. This rate contains both
wide across the campus, with every dollar helping
the University distribution and the Foundation’s
to support the things that distinguish URI from
management fee. For the upcoming fiscal year,
its peers: its students, faculty and programs. The
the distribution to the University will equal
investments help shape URI’s character and its
3.4 percent of the rolling prior twelve quarter
future, while contributing to its competitiveness on
average market value on the designated calculation
the local, state, national and international levels.
date (December 31), up from 3.1 percent last fiscal
The generosity of the University of Rhode Island’s
year. The management fee has been set at 1.3
many endowment donors is deeply appreciated.
percent, which was lowered from last year’s 1.4
On behalf of the entire University community,
percent rate, as the Executive Board moves toward
including the students who benefit directly from
a more donor-centric and impact-minded balance
endowed scholarships, we extend to those donors,
in the breakdown of the overall spending rate.
our heartfelt and most sincere thanks.
For more information about the management and oversight of the URI endowment, as well as asset allocation, portfolio composition and payout calculation specifics, please visit www.urifoundation/ investmentperformance. The goal of this report is to provide you with meaningful financial information. In doing so, we realize that some questions may arise. If so, please feel free to contact Merelise Hitte, the URI Foundation’s director of finance, by calling (401) 874-4490 or by emailing mhitte@foundation.uri.edu.
uri foundation 79 Upper College Road, Kingston, Rhode Island 02881 (401) 874-7900 | foundation@uri.edu | urifoundation.org As is customary with many universities across the country, a one-time gift fee is deducted from all donations to provide essential support to uri’s overall development activities.
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