2019 Survey ranks Liberty University 68th in the U.S. in endowment

Liberty University’s endowments rose to $1.6 billion in 2019, now ranking 68th in the country for endowments, according to a recent survey by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Endowments, which include any donations of money or property to a non-profit organization (in this case Liberty), made up the majority of Liberty’s investments in 2019, according to WFXR. Liberty invested $2 billion, and $1.6 billion of that was endowments. That number rose $300 million from 2018 to 2019, according to the Liberty Journal. 

This consistent growth in endowments has placed Liberty among some of the most prominent universities in the country.

“That list includes Stanford, MIT, Notre Dame, University of Michigan, University of Texas, Texas A&M and the Ivy League’s Penn, Yale, Harvard and Princeton,” Liberty University President Jerry Falwell said while speaking with WFXR. “This means that the national-level acumen of our LU leadership and investment partners is now considered ‘business as usual!’”

As Liberty continues to grow and invest in construction around campus, some members of the faculty view the growth as a positive sign for the financial state of the university.

“What is interesting is that our specific investment strategy is purposely built with less risk than the portfolio of many other schools,” Liberty’s senior vice president of finance and investment management Don Moon said, according to WFXR. “Even with a lower-risk strategy, we are seeing greater growth than our largest endowed competitors. This serves our stakeholders, our families (and) our students.”

Craft is the assistant news editor. Follow him on Twitter.