Former Director of Investments Tom Kannam has taken on the newly created position of Vice President of Investments. According to Justin Harmon, Director of University Communications, Kannam’s basic responsibilities will not change with the new title.
“It is not a new position; rather the position has been upgraded because the role has expanded to reflect the strategic importance of strong investment returns in growing Wesleyan’s endowment,” Harmon said.
Kannam had been Director of Investments since 1998.
“[He] worked with the Portfolio Subcommittee of the Board of Trustees to determine appropriate asset allocation, identified and screened external investment managers, provided analysis and due diligence on proposed and existing investments, and measured the performance of our investments,” wrote President Doug Bennet in an email to the campus community.
In his new role, he will report to President Bennet and work with Interim Vice President for Finance and Administration Peter Patton and the University’s senior staff and trustees.
As listed in the Strategic Plan, the University’s top financial priority is to make prudent investments that will reap high enough returns to offset a comparatively small endowment, and provide sufficient funding for scholarships and financial aid. The University’s limited endowment has made it more difficult for it to compete with its peer institutions.
A particular focus is to become more competitive in the loan levels that the University expects students’ families to take on. Thus, future investment decisions will have to be able to reap enough returns to allow the University to raise more money to put towards scholarships and financial aid.
According to the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), Wesleyan’s endowment fund in 2005 was approximately $564 million. At the same period, Middlebury’s was $721 million and Amherst and Swathmore’s were both $1 billion.
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