Clearbrook invited a panel of Endowment and Foundation investment committee members to discuss their thoughts and ideas on:
1) How has and will COIVD-19 impact your endowment and/or foundation.
2)
What are the primary issues confronting educational and non-profit
institutions:
– Student enrollments, on-line teaching, and student housing.
– Reassessing capital and spending projects.
– Delay and/or reassessment of fund
raising
operations
– Plans and ideas to help bridge potential operational or funding
shortfalls.
3) How can E&Fs work with their consultants to alter and modify the current portfolio to work harder to meet annual spending needs and granting goals.
4) How can an institution take advantage of market dislocations to generate higher absolute and relative rates of return.
5) How can plans recover the 10-20% losses in the portfolio and improve their ability to achieve the long term annual objective of 5% spend rate plus 2% inflation.
Our Guest Speakers
Mike Pratt, President and Executive Director of the Scherman Foundation
Mike has been the President and Executive Director of the Scherman Foundation since 2009. He served as Program Officer from 1996 until 2009, and continues to serve as the Foundation’s Treasurer, overseeing its investment portfolio.
Mike is the immediate past chair of the Board of Trustees of Pratt Institute, one of the nation’s leading architecture, art and design schools and currently serves as Vice-Chair as well as leading the Investment and Development Committees.
He has provided leadership in several outside philanthropic roles, including serving as Chair and Treasurer of the Environmental Grantmakers Association and as Chair of the Advisory Committee of the Initiative for Neighborhood Organizing (INCO.) Prior to entering the world of philanthropy through a one-year fellowship at the Rockefeller Family Fund in 1995, he practiced law with the civil division of New York City’s Legal Aid Society for ten years, developing expertise in equitable development, federal housing subsidies, and landlord tenant law.
Earlier, he worked for NYPIRG as a community organizer, later becoming Director of the Straphangers Campaign. He serves as the Chair of the Board of Philanthropy New York and is also a board member for the New York Foundation. He received his undergraduate degree at Amherst College and a J.D. at the NYU School of Law.
Diane Loveland, Director of Foundation Investment, SUNY Oneonta
Diane is an alumnus of SUNY Oneonta and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Economics. Diane joined the college in 2006 as Portfolio Manager for the Foundation Finance Office and has nearly 40 years of experience in investment management and analysis. Prior to joining the college Diane served as a member of the Foundation board for eight years, during which time she chaired the Finance Committee and served on the Investment Subcommittee. Diane works closely with the Foundation Board committees to prepare for long-term growth, focusing on appreciation, capital preservation and income. As Director of Foundation Finance, Diane is responsible for overseeing the investment management of all gifted funds for the College.
James Leach, Senior Managing Director, National Trust
James is a seasoned executive with over thirty years of experience in both
public and private global companies. He is currently Senior Managing Director, of National Trust a single-family office which manages the interests of one of Rhode Island’s oldest industrial Families. The Family business was originally established in 1905.
In the 1990’s, Mr. Leach pioneered the conversion of Superfund sites for private development with the US EPA. This process became the model for the entire country.
Mr.
Leach has served on many boards over his career and currently serves on
the board of Kenney Manufacturing Company, a 103-year old manufacturer of
household products, and Airborne Wireless Network a high-speed broadband
airborne wireless network by linking commercial aircraft in flight. He is the
Chairman of the Rhode Island PBS Foundation, and currently serves as Treasurer
and Trustee of the Rectory School Board. Mr. Leach is a 2020 Inductee to
the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame.
Mr. Leach holds a Bachelor of Arts in
Finance from Nasson College, Georgia Institute of Technology Innovation
Leadership, and Harvard Business School AC and GNE Programs.