USC endowment suffers small decline in 2016

Though the University’s $6 billion fundraising campaign is just $300 million shy of its seven-year goal, a report released Monday showed that USC’s endowment fell by 2 percent in 2016.

According to L.A. Biz, a study conducted by the American City Business Journal reported a decline at USC from $4.71 billion in 2015 to $4.61 billion in 2016. The study analyzed 25 private, non-profit schools with large investment portfolios, specifically universities with endowments of $1 billion or more at the beginning of the 2016 fiscal year. The 2016 fiscal year ended for most universities on June 30, though some institutions have yet to publish their most recent data.

USC, however, was not alone. Every university analyzed — except for Boston University — saw a decline in their endowment. According to the report, the cumulative loss of these particular endowments were 4 percent of their value, or $5.3 billion. Southern Methodist University reported the greatest percentage loss at 8 percent, dropping from $1.55 billion to $1.42 billion.

The findings indicate this may be the worst year for private colleges since 2009, when the decline was a much greater 16 percent loss following the Great Recession. Fredd Puddester, the chief financial officer at Williams College, told L.A. Biz the drops could be attributed to a “particularly ugly year” in equity markets.

The University has undergone a $6 billion fundraising campaign since 2011. The campaign aims to, among other things, raise funds specifically to increase the endowment. $5.7 billion has been raised from donations by 312,403 alumni, parents and faculty to date, according to the campaign’s official website. Of the money currently raised, $1.4 billion will be devoted to endowing faculty positions and research endowments, and $359 million will be devoted toward endowed student scholarships and fellowships.