Barnard Faces Endowment Losses

Though Barnard College’s endowment decreased from over $200 million in July to $163 million by Dec. 31, 2008, administrators say that the institution, which is used to pinching pennies, will weather the economic crisis.

President Debora Spar first noted the decline in Barnard’s endowment in a December e-mail and letter that praised the generosity of alumnae. Greg Brown, vice president for finance and planning, said that the endowment has shrunk but that compared to peer universities, Barnard is doing well.

“The market value of the endowment at Dec. 31, 2008 is estimated to be $163 million, a decline since June 30, 2008,” he said. “These results are slightly better than the results in the overall financial marketplace.”

It is unclear to what extent the losses will affect Barnard’s day-to-day operations. Much like its counterpart across Broadway, Barnard is closely scrutinizing all departmental requests for new personnel. “The College has not implemented a unilateral hiring freeze but is carefully and strategically reviewing its staffing levels in light of our operational needs and the current economic environment,” Brown said.

Along with the endowment’s decrease comes anxiety over whether students’ financial aid needs will be met. Families have been calling the Office of Financial Aid, concerned that they will be unable to make their tuition payments.

“The decrease in the endowment will have little impact on our future ability to offer financial aid to our students,” Brown said. “As it does in good times and bad, the Financial Aid Office works closely with families of students that are facing financial hardships.”

He also insisted that registration and retention rates have remained constant. “Registrations for the spring semester are consistent with prior years, and only a handful of students have asked for special consideration regarding their housing contracts.”

Some students, however, are voicing concerns about the escalating crisis.
“My family has been pretty hard hit,” Nadia Abascal, BC ’11, said. “My house is not in the best position it could be in ... I didn’t realize the school would be so hard hit as I am.”

“I’ve heard some of my friends telling me their financial aid packages have been cut,” Doris Domoszlai, BC ’11, said. “The endowment is kind of decreasing, but at the same time they are going to back everyone’s needs,” she said.

Student Government Association president Sarah Besnoff, BC ’09, emphasized that SGA is working with the administration to address these concerns.

“[The] Barnard Board of Trustees is meeting next week and is focusing on financial aid,” she said. She also mentioned that the student representative to the Board of Trustees has been asked to make a ten-minute presentation on student issues.

Besnoff added that though Barnard’s long-term financial health is not yet at stake, the Financial Aid Office is feeling the crunch because its funds derive from endowment returns. She also added that 40 percent of Barnard students receive direct aid from Barnard.

While Abascal said that she finds the Office of Financial Aid a great resource, she stressed that everyone is affected by the economic crisis. “They’re good—they hear your complaints if you haven’t been given enough [money],” she said. “[But] everyone is going through the same thing.”

“Our Financial Aid Office works closely with families of incoming and continuing students to develop strategies to make a Barnard education affordable,” Brown said. “Although financial aid calculators can be helpful, we recommend that our families work directly with the Financial Aid Office to understand how Barnard family contributions are determined.”

Faculty members are also trying to make sense of what the crisis means to them.

“I think all faculty have felt some considerable loss in their retirement accounts simply because they are invested in the stock market by TIAA-CREF, a pension plan that trustees and individual faculty make monthly payments [to] that provides retirement,” Barnard history professor Robert McCaughey said. “We continue to get paid, but our net worth in our retirement have been negatively affected.”

“Individually, members of the faculty and staff have seen their personal retirement and investment portfolios decline as a result of the economic crisis. Naturally, that creates anxiety for them,” Brown said.

Brown stated that Barnard is taking necessary steps to meet the financial needs and concerns of all faculty members and that Barnard’s main sources of donations have remained intact.

“As of Dec. 31, 2008, participation in the Barnard Fund, the College’s annual giving program, was up by over five percent since last year with six percent more donors,” Brown said. “Barnard’s trustees have also already committed over $650,000 to this year’s annual Scholarship Dinner and Auction, scheduled for April 29, which entirely benefits the College’s scholarship program.”