Yale Daily News

Updated: Sunday, November 22, 2009 6:56 p.m.

A A A

For Yale, a $12 billion recession

Staff Reporter
Published Tuesday, January 27, 2009

The toll of the financial crisis on Yale’s endowment could total roughly $12 billion over the next decade, according to the University’s most recent budget projections.

That $12 billion represents the difference between what the endowment would have been in 2018 had it stayed on course and what the anticipated value of the endowment in 2018 is now, given this year’s estimated 25 percent drop in value and the expectation of no growth next year.

Instead of standing, a decade from now, at $33.6 billion, the endowment is now on track to be worth $21 billion in 2018, less than...

#1 By A. Nonny Mouse 12:18p.m. on January 27, 2009

"University planners use a 9.25 percent growth model, relying on the endowment to grow by at least that much ..."

To get some idea of why Yale is in such good shape in this crisis relative to it's peer institutions, one might contemplate that Harvard Business School Dean Light tells its alumns that Harvard planners have for years used a 15 percent growth model, relying on the Harvard endowment to grow by at least that much. This "15 percent assumption" is reported to have been Larry Summers' innovation. Another related element of Summers' legacy is that while he is now gone from Cambridge, and his grand and wildly unafforable vision for a new Alston Campus are now "deader than a doornail" (in Dean Light's words), Harvard is stuck with many burdensome obligations and distortions resulting from that absurd "15% assumption," the ridiculous planning and commitments that assumption led Harvard to make, and from other aspects of from Summers' kooky reign.

#2 By YaleFan 9:19a.m. on January 28, 2009

Seriously. You have to ask - and be honest and acknowledge the truth. Someone is to blame for this - and it isn't President Bush. Billions of dollars gone like a puff of smoke. Trillions worldwide. It could have been avoided. All because of a political powerplay so the Libs could be in control. Without Truth, Liberty is lost. Liberal fools - this is what you have wrought.

Add Comment

You are not logged in. We do allow posting without registration, but we encourage you to register or log in to enjoy full access to our comments features!