Chief Investment Officer demystifies Wellesley’s endowment
Chief Investment Officer Debby Kuenstner gave a presentation to Senate about the endowment to help clarify misconceptions. The endowment is made up of 3,500 individually endowed funds with a net worth of about $2 billion dollars. For investment, all of the money is pooled and invested by the Investing Committee, which is a part of the Wellesley College Board of Trustees. The endowment cannot be spent in its entirety as it needs to be preserved for future generations of Wellesley students to ensure intergenerational equity. Endowed funds can only be used for the purpose designated by the donor. For example, if a donor gives $1 million for supporting faculty salaries, then it can only be used for that purpose. Thirty one percent of the endowment supports financial aid, 21 percent supports faculty salaries, 18 percent goes to departmental programs, 14 percent to the college’s operating budget and 16 percent to other categories including the Davis Museum, Academic Centers, Wellesley Centers for Women and internships. Questions can be directed to Debby Kuenstner at dkuenstner@wellesley.edu.
College Government President outlines goals for year
College Government President Adeline Lee outlined the goals for College Government President’s Council (CGPC). Lee wants to expand the support system for mental health by collaborating with on-campus organizations and the Wellesley College administration. CGPC will be organizing another Ideafest to tackle relevant issues on campus through the collaboration of students and College Government. Lee wants to organize a week-long event that tackles the idea of failure. Through lectures by faculty, students and young alums, Lee hopes Wellesley students will begin to talk about failure positively and break down the facade of perfection that surrounds “Wendy Wellesley.” Lee wants to expand socioeconomic support during winter and summer breaks to help students purchase food. She also hopes to discuss best practices with faculty to help make purchasing textbooks less of a burden to students.
Sustainability Committee hosts open hours
Sustainability Coordinator Sharon Bort announced the open hours for discussing the Sustainability Advisory Committee’s new Sustainability Plan. These discussions will take place today from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. in El Table in Founders Hall and tomorrow from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Sage Lounge in the Science Center. Students can learn about the Sustainability Plan and the context in which it was created by finding the Oct. 14 node under “2015 Stories” on the news section of the Wellesley College website.
