October 3, 2003

College Endowments Rebounded in 2002-3, Posting a 2.9% Return, Survey Finds

By JOHN L. PULLEY

A year after the investments of most higher-education endowments lost money, the funds are back in the black.

Endowment officials reported an average total return of 2.9 percent for the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to preliminary results of the Commonfund Benchmarks Study, which were released in September.

By comparison, in the 2001-2 fiscal year, the typical endowment posted a loss of 5.4 percent.

"The endowments of U.S. educational institutions have turned

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