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How Your Endowed Gift is Managed

Gifts of endowment are invested by Stanford Management Company (SMC), the office within the university that manages long-term financial assets to provide support for Stanford’s academic mission.

The endowment touches virtually every part of university life, providing support for more than 16,400 students and 2,200 faculty members, seven schools, two hospitals, plus dozens of centers, institutes, and programs.

SMC pursues an investment program with two primary goals: to provide support for current university operations, including financial aid, and to preserve the endowment so that future generations of students and scholars are supported. The success of this investment program is crucial to Stanford’s ability to carry out its mission and have the greatest impact around the world.

Since it was established in 1991, SMC has delivered strong results, placing Stanford’s performance in the top decile of U.S. colleges and universities. Over the 29-year period, this outperformance has added more than $21 billion to the value of the endowment versus the median result of these peers.