SEMO fares better in endowments than report shows

Wayne Smith didn't believe the figures. He was right.

According to a national survey, the market value of Southeast Missouri University Foundation's endowments declined by 4.1 percent over the course of the past fiscal year, which ended June 30.

But Smith, vice president of university advancement for Southeast and executive director of the fund-raising foundation, immediately questioned the survey results when contacted Thursday by a Southeast Missourian reporter. "I was puzzled," he said.

Smith and Kathy Mangels, vice president of business and finance at Southeast, checked the school's own data, which showed far different figures.

Southeast's foundation had $30.1 million in endowments as of June 30, a 7.8 percent increase in market value compared to the previous fiscal year, Smith said.

That increase takes into account the return on investments and added financial gifts and subtracts the expenses such as the money paid out in student scholarships, he said.

The annual survey by the National Association of College and Business Officers mistakenly reported the Southeast foundation's endowments declining in value from $27.93 million to $26.78 million, Smith and Mangels said.

No. 613

According to the survey, only eight of 765 colleges and universities that replied to the survey suffered a drop in the market value of their endowments.

Mangels said the survey error occurred because some of Southeast's data was provided online and the remainder was faxed later. The faxed data was overlooked by the business officers association in tabulating the numbers, she said.

The Chronicle of Higher Education, a national journal that covers all aspects of the higher education industry, reported on the survey in its Jan. 26 issue. It reported that 62 colleges and universities reported having $1 billion or more in endowments. Heading the list was Harvard University with endowments totaling $28.9 billion.

Southeast ranked 613th on the survey. Even with the error corrected, Southeast still ranks low in terms of endowments. The Cape Girardeau school would rank 597th on the list, Mangels said.

More than 80 percent of Southeast's endowments are invested in stocks, Smith said. The rest are invested in bonds.

The foundation during the past fiscal year actually saw its investments grow by 9.6 percent, he said.

By comparison, the average return on investments for colleges with similar-sized endowments amounted to 7.8 percent, he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123