ENDOWMENT
MANAGEMENT
A growing endowment helps TCU build and sustain a high margin of academic excellence
The Texas Christian University endowment provides independence and stability as well as a means of achieving and sustaining a high margin of excellence. As TCU’s position rises in higher education, the University will increasingly compete for talent with prestigious peer institutions that have substantial endowments. A robust and growing endowment, therefore, is needed to sustain a competitive advantage and to provide enduring support for critical goals. In short, a strong endowment goes hand-in-hand with becoming a powerful academic community that prepares global leaders with excellence, perspective and integrity to be a force for the greater good. The cumulative effects of the endowment’s growth over the decades, plus new endowment gifts from alumni, parents and friends, have had a significant impact upon academic excellence at TCU. For example, the University’s U.S. News & World Report ranking has placed it among the nation’s top 100 universities for the past 10 years. At TCU, the endowment refers to the long-term investment assets of the University. These assets are invested in perpetuity. Funds enter the endowment from two primary sources: gifts from donors and additions to long-term savings that are set aside each year by the Board of Trustees. Over the years, donors have contributed to the endowment, creating endowed funds that support scholarships, faculty positions, academic programs and other top priorities. In Fiscal Year 2020, endowment income provided for 9.9 percent of the University’s budgeted operating expenses. Currently, the endowment totals $1.8 billion and the National Association of College and University Business Officers’ most recent annual survey ranks it 65th in the nation in asset value. While this signifies that TCU has encouraging momentum behind the endowment, the numbers also reflect that the University needs to further build the
