Tufts' endowment grew more rapidly over the past year than that of any other Massachusetts university, according to the Boston Business Journal.
Tufts' endowment grew by 34 percent last year, putting it at $1.2 billion. Tufts, however, still has only the sixth largest university endowment in Massachusetts, a far cry from Harvard's top-ranking $29.2 billion endowment, a figure that also makes it the best-endowed school in the country.
Tufts had "extraordinary success in our fundraising" last year, raising "well over $200 million in cash," President Lawrence Bacow wrote in an e-mail to the Daily. Gifts from Tufts alumni Jonathan Tisch (A '76) and Pierre and Pam Omidyar (LA '88 and LA '89, respectively) contributed mightily to Tufts' fiscal surge.
Tisch, a university trustee of 18 years, donated $40 million to endow the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service. Tufts announced the donation on May 12 of this year.
The Omidyars invested $100 million last year to the Omidyar-Tufts Microfinance Fund, an international program designed to help people in developing countries escape from poverty through business ventures. Their gift was announced on November 4, 2005.
In addition to these donations, "the endowment has grown due to excellent investment performance by our investment office," Bacow told the Daily.
Financially, Tufts has long trailed after other schools of similar reputations, leaving it lagging behind competitors in national rankings and facilities caliber. Although it competes for applicants with better-endowed universities, like Johns Hopkins University and Emory University, Tufts is well behind these schools in national rankings that factor into financial considerations like spending on students or faculty.
Tufts is tied with the University of Southern California and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill for 27th place in U.S. News and World Report's "America's Top National Universities" list. Johns Hopkins is ranked 16th, and Emory is ranked 18th.
TheCenter, a University of Florida research enterprise that focuses on national research universities, ranked John Hopkins 9th and Emory 29th in its 2005 edition of "Top American Research Universities." Tufts, which reported a 2005 endowment of approximately $900 million, was not even included in the top 50 universities on that list.
Many hope that last year's financial surge will enhance Tufts' reputation. "This is a period of tremendous excitement and momentum. This is a university poised," Vice President for University Advancement Brian Lee told the Boston Business Journal.
"I think being part of the billion-dollar club increases Tufts' prestige," senior Michael Ansell said. "Especially for people who are concerned with how other universities perceive Tufts, this makes a big difference."
"I am pleased that the endowment has grown and continues to grow," Bacow wrote. "It provides the resources for the university to invest to strengthen both teaching and research at Tufts."
