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News Release

Last modified: Monday, February 14, 2005

IU endowment ranks in top 15 nationally and tops $1 billion

Editors: A list of the top 15 public university endowments follows this release.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University ranks among America's top 15 public universities in market value of its endowment, according to a survey released by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). This is the 14th consecutive year that IU has been among the nation's largest university endowments.

This year, IU was 13th among all public colleges and universities and seventh in the Big Ten. More than 740 colleges and universities participated in the survey.

"Our endowment is not only performing well compared to those at other universities," said Curt Simic, president of the IU Foundation, "but IU also surpassed the $1 billion benchmark for the first time in fiscal 2004." The foundation manages the university's endowment.

"We credit our Board of Directors' Investment Committee for guiding us so well over the years," Simic said. "They have inspired our investment staff to diversify the portfolio and grow the endowment for IU."

In fiscal 2004, the IU endowment ranked in the top 4 percent of all institutions surveyed, with a one-year investment return rate of 20.9 percent.

The endowment grew by $71.6 million, or 7.6 percent during fiscal 2004. Although the endowment earned more than 20 percent during that time period, IU schools and departments, as beneficiaries of gifts made to the endowment, receive a portion of the earnings for expenditures. The remainder is reinvested to maintain the purchasing power of the endowment over time.

"The best news," Simic said, "is that donors can be assured that their endowment gifts are being invested wisely. The IU endowment, in continued partnership with the state of Indiana, is providing funding for scholarships, fellowships, faculty, equipment, buildings and the many other enhancements that the private and public sectors bring to IU."

List of the Top 15 Public University Endowments
Market Value of Endowment Assets as of June 30, 2004
(in thousands, Big Ten universities appear in italics)

1. University of Texas System. $10,336,687
2. University of California, $4,767,466
3. The Texas A&M University System and Foundations, $4,373,047
4. University of Michigan, $4,163,382
5. University of Virginia, $2,793,225
6. University of Minnesota and Foundation, $1,542,863
7. Ohio State University and Foundation, $1,541,175
8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Foundations, $1,317,211
9. University of Washington, $1,315,894
10. PURDUE UNIVERSITY, $1,207,131
11. University of Illinois and Foundation, $1,058,167
12. Pennsylvania State University, $1,056,078
13. INDIANA UNIVERSITY AND FOUNDATION, $1,012,707
14. University of Delaware, $995,889
15. University of Wisconsin Foundation, $994,172

Ranking compiled by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

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