Endowment Report Your Investment in the University of Rhode Island’s Future
FALL 2023
This report was prepared by URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement to provide an overview of the investment performance and impact of URI's endowment.
URI Endowment Performance and A MESSAGE FROM
Deborah A. Imondi ’83 M.B.A.’86 Chair of the URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement Investment Committee The University of Rhode Island Foundation & Alumni Engagement Investment Committee is pleased to report solid growth for the endowment over the past year. The general portfolio returned 9.6% during the fiscal year ending June 30th, with strong performance mostly attributed to managers concentrated within the emerging markets, global equity markets, and specific opportunistic strategies. Our private equity allocation lagged behind the public equity markets during this period but is expected to generate strong returns over time. The Committee maintains a long-term strategy for a healthy endowment that can support the University’s annual needs while also preparing for multi-year goals. Reliable endowment funds are essential to the scholarships, professorships, and research funding that often set URI apart from its peers. At the close of the last year, the URIFAE Board of Directors voted on a distribution of 3.6 percent, taking into account the performance of the portfolio and the University’s needs. We recognize and deeply appreciate that the URI endowment is built on gifts from alumni, parents, friends, corporations, and foundations. We consider it an honor to work with you to advance the University’s biggest ideas and boldest plans. We look forward to continuing the work in this final year of the comprehensive campaign, driving the success of individual students and faculty while pursuing innovation for the common good.
With best regards,
Deborah A. Imondi ’83 M.B.A.’86
IN THE WORDS OF OUR STUDENTS… “My parents never had the opportunity to go to college. We are so grateful for the scholarship I received.” Matthew Madrid ’24 Marketing major
“My parents work hard and make sacrifices to send me to URI, and the scholarship I received helps me afford to attend my first-choice school.” Sophia Squillante ’25 History major
Activity Report
$211m value of the URI endowment as of 6/30/23
$7m endowment payout for the 2023–2024 year
1,229 endowed funds managed by URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement
878 endowed funds support scholarships
2,143 private scholarships awarded to students
89% of undergraduates receive some form of financial aid (federal, state, private)
ANNUAL ENDOWMENT PAYOUT
ASSET ALLOCATION as of June 30, 2023
The following graph represents the total amount of endowment-generated funds distributed to URI each fiscal year, based on URIFAE’s spending policy, for use over five academic years.
13.7% 18.8%
IN MILLIONS $12.0
MARKETABLE ALTERNATIVES
$10.0
$4.0
4.6
5.7
5.4
6.4
11.9% FIXED INCOME AND CASH
$8.0 $6.0
GLOBAL EX U.S. EQUITY
7
4.9%
$2.0
EMERGING MARKETS EQUITY
$0
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
9.3%
The annual payout figure is based on a rolling 3-year average using 12/31 values.
GLOBAL EQUITY
PORTFOLIO VALUE As of June 30, 2023, the University of Rhode Island’s endowment portfolio had a market value of $211 million. The market value for each of the past five years on June 30 is represented below. $225
218
$175
$125
U.S.EQUITY
12% PRIVATE INVESTMENTS
IN MILLIONS
$200
$150
29.4%
148
194
211
THE INVESTMENT OF URI’S ENDOWMENT
163
$100 $75 $50 $0
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
ANNUALIZED RETURN ON INVESTMENT The annualized return on URI’s general endowment portfolio, as of June 30, 2023, was 9.6 percent. The returns for the past five years are shown below. INCREASE/DECREASE AS OF JUNE 30
Find a complete listing of endowed funds at alumni.uri.edu/endowmentfunds. If you have questions about the endowment, please contact Gina Simonelli, senior director, donor relations and engagement at 401.874.7101 or gsimonelli@uri.edu.
2019 2.8% 2020 2%
31.9%
2021
-11.8%
Spending Policy: The endowment spending rate that will be applied in the 2023–2024 academic year is 5.05 percent, which contains both the University distribution and the URIFAE advancement fee. The University payout is 3.6 percent of the market value of the endowment (calculated on a 12-quarter rolling average ending on December 31, 2022). The advancement fee is 1.45 percent. The dollar value of the payout to the University to support gift purposes this year will increase from $6.4 million to $7 million.
2022 2023
9.6%
UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND FOUNDATION & ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT campaign.uri.edu
79 UPPER COLLEGE ROAD, KINGSTON, RI 02881-2023 401.874.7900 | alumni.uri.edu