Some elite colleges are selling bonds to make up for losses their endowments have suffered in recent months, the Bloomberg news service reported today.

Princeton University has sold $1-billion of debt, while Harvard University has sold $1.5-billion. The bonds allow the colleges to raise money while hanging on to investments, like real estate, that they expect will recover in value, Bloomberg said. Sharply falling endowments have reduced the money available to finance university operations on many campuses.

Wealthy institutions like Harvard and Princeton, with their AAA bond ratings, are safe bets for investors, experts said. Bloomberg determined that that Princeton had sold 10-year 4.95-percent notes and 30-year 5.7-percent bonds.

Princeton’s endowment may fall by as much as 25 percent by the end of the fiscal year, Princeton’s president said last week. “We wanted to make sure that if it does reach that minus 25, that we’re completely prepared and can continue to sustain our strategic priorities,” Carolyn Ainslie, Princeton’s treasurer, told Bloomberg. “We want to make sure we don’t have to take draconian actions in terms of our operations.” —Scott Carlson