MIT Beating Yale and Harvard in Endowment Growth
A Yale graduate who formerly helped manage his alma mater’s endowment is now outperforming it as head of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s investment fund, which achieved 13.2 percent growth in fiscal 2015, The Wall Street Journal writes.
Colleges Step Up Efforts to Court Sports Stars as Donors
Major universities are increasingly soliciting financial support from former student-athletes who have gone on to lucrative professional basketball, football, and baseball careers, writes The New York Times.
Many Big-Name Invitees Skipped Clinton Global Initiative Event
Pope Francis, Elton John, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Federal Reserve head Janet Yellen were among dozens of leaders, celebrities, and donors who said no to invitations to participate in this year’s Clinton Global Initiative, Politico writes, citing sources familiar with the planning of the Clinton Foundation’s annual marquee event.
Regulators Shuttering Nonprofit N.Y. Health-Insurance Co-op
Health Republic Insurance of New York, the largest of 23 nonprofit health insurers launched two years ago under the Affordable Care Act, has been ordered to close by state and federal officials after losing some $130 million since the start of 2014, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal report.
New Leader at Cummings Brings Experience With Family Boards
Sharon Alpert takes over the New York foundation as it seeks stability after the previous president was ousted by heirs.
By Alex Daniels
Senior Editor, Foundations
Gates Foundation Sues Brazilian Oil Company and Auditor Over Fraud
On Thursday the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation filed a lawsuit against the state-run oil company Petróleo Brasileiro SA and its auditor, claiming that corruption at the company caused the philanthropy to lose tens of millions of dollars, The Wall Street Journal reports.
How Philanthropy Can Play a Key Role in Advancing the New U.N. Development Goals
The targets should get support from foundations that work in the United States as well as overseas.
By Vikki Spruill
Contributor
New Leader at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami
Other personnel changes this week include shifts at the Institute for Nonprofit News and the Omidyar Network.
By anais.strickland
Contributor
Boston Public Station WGBH Buys Global Digital-News Service
The nonprofit broadcast station WGBH announced plans Thursday to acquire GlobalPost, a for-profit digital-journalism outlet that focuses on international news and has struggled financially since it was started in 2009, reports The Boston Globe.
Fiorina-Advised Nonprofit Touted Obamacare Enrollment
Carly Fiorina, a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, serves on the advisory board of a California nonprofit that promoted enrollment in Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges, The Huffington Post reports, and she chairs a charity that facilitated goods donations to an abortion-rights organization, according to BuzzFeed.
N.Y. Philharmonic Gets $25 Million Gift From Board Chair
The orchestra’s announcement Thursday of the donation by the financier Oscar S. Schafer and his wife, Didi, coincided with the group’s first performance in the newly rechristened David Geffen Hall, reports The New York Times.
Yale Endowment Reports 11.5% Return for Fiscal 2015
The university’s fund, which relies strongly on hedge funds and private equity, posted an 11.5-percent gain for the year ending June 30, outpacing Harvard’s investment performance for the fifth straight year, writes The Wall Street Journal.
Pierre Omidyar Donates $269 Million in eBay Shares
An eBay regulatory filing this week disclosed that Mr. Omidyar, a co-founder of the company, gave away one-tenth of his stock last month, according to EcommerceBytes, a news site that covers the online-auction industry. The causes that will benefit from the stock gift valued at nearly $270 million are not known.
Senate Turns Back Bill to Cut Funding for Planned Parenthood
With eight Republican senators joining almost all of their Democratic peers, the Senate voted 52-47 Thursday against a bill to impose a one-year moratorium on federal money for Planned Parenthood, USA Today and Bloomberg report.
Clinton Foundation Kicks Off Marquee Conference With Shalala at the Helm
Speakers at this year’s event in New York include Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank; Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft; and Ursula Burns, chief executive of Xerox Corporation.
By Megan O’Neil
Contributor
Network for Good Releases Free Giving Tuesday Tools
The online gift-processing platform is offering guides and webinars for nonprofits to prepare for the increasingly popular post-Thanksgiving annual event.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor