UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FAYETTEVILLE ENDOWMENT REACHES ALL-TIME HIGH: $220 MILLION

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The endowed fund holdings for the Fayetteville campus of the University of Arkansas have reached an all-time high of $220 million, as of June 30, 1999 ¾ an increase of 51 percent over the $145.5 million reported one year earlier.

The total includes endowed funds of almost $62.9 million managed by the Fayetteville campus and $157.1 million managed by the University of Arkansas Foundation for the UA Fayetteville campus. The total also includes non-cash assets.

UA Chancellor John White said, "The rapid growth of our endowment is key to realizing our goals for the University, particularly in our ability to retain and recruit nationally competitive students and faculty. Our state appropriation provides funding for basic operating expenses, but it is our endowment that will provide the margin of excellence to fuel our emergence as a nationally competitive, student-centered research university."

David Malone, executive director of the University of Arkansas Foundation, said, "The endowment acts like a permanent savings account for the University to provide a perpetual source of income for such purposes as student scholarships, faculty chairs and academic programs. We’ve been successful this year in increasing the earnings on the foundation accounts."

The Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation’s gift to the Sam M. Walton College of Business Administration contributed $48.2 million to the endowment during the fiscal year. Beyond this gift, the $26.3 million additional dollars added to the endowment through additional gifts and earnings represents an 18 percent increase over the previous year’s total endowment figure.

Of the $85.2 million raised last year in private gift support for the U of A Fayetteville, $55.5 million or 65 percent of the total was designated by donors for the University's endowment.

The University of Arkansas Foundation manages endowment funds for each of the UA system’s campuses. The holdings of the Fayetteville campus account for 72 percent of the endowment funds managed by the Foundation.

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