Carnegie Mellon and Georgetown - why so low endowments?

[Anonymous]

I graduated from Georgetown and tried to give the school a substantial gift. My experience with the individuals in the fund-raising group was a total disaster. They did not want to accommodate me in terms of my intentions for the gift. One member of the group was rude and insulted me. I subsequently met the director of the fund-raising department who was dismissive of one of my complaints. I wrote two letters of complaint to the president of the university and never received a response. So there you have it! I established two endowed perpetual funds at Johns Hopkins Medicine instead. Hopkins has a terrific fund-raising group which Georgetown could learn from and emulate. I had a wonderful education at Georgetown and loved my time there, but I would never give the school a dime based upon my horrific experience with the fund-raising personnel and the president.

Arthur E. Gowran, Esq.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD turned down CMU because the buildings were in such a state of disrepair. She thought the buildings were beautiful but falling down. Of course, it didn't help that the students seemed depressed and overworked. Her classmate enrolled and, while she likes the school, she is stressed. I know everyone rants about how the luxuries are a waste of money but when you turn off students because of a lack of upkeep, you are going to far in the other direction.

Cmu dorms are disgusting and filthy. I don't expect wake forest or Princeton level accommodations but come on.

Princeton doesn't have nice dorms. People don't go to Princeton for the dorms.

People don't go to Princeton for the dorms, but the dorms are generally quite nice. For example, the crappiest residential college in my time there -- Butler -- has been completely redone and is now leaps and bounds better than before.

Well, my Wilson dorm is still a dump, and I was just back for my 20th reunion, which took place near Little, and while the hallways seem to have been renovated, the bathrooms are still in the basement and still spartan.

I lived in Wilson! Good memories! I almost cried when I first found out I was living there, however. Somehow, it was never on the Princeton tour...

[Anonymous]

My husband is a Georgetown grad. He wants nothing to do with it, as it isn't Catholic enough for his taste. There are many non-Catholic graduates; maybe the school is too Catholic for them? In other words, maybe no one is terribly happy?

[Anonymous]

There is a research paper out there that makes the point that large endowments actually result in administrations behaving in strange ways against the long term interests of the institutions and become focused on maintaining their power structure within the institution.

The paper argues that moderate endowments actually are better for the institutions stakeholders

I can't locate the link but it was a very interesting paper. I will post a link here if I find it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from Georgetown and tried to give the school a substantial gift. My experience with the individuals in the fund-raising group was a total disaster. They did not want to accommodate me in terms of my intentions for the gift. One member of the group was rude and insulted me. I subsequently met the director of the fund-raising department who was dismissive of one of my complaints. I wrote two letters of complaint to the president of the university and never received a response. So there you have it! I established two endowed perpetual funds at Johns Hopkins Medicine instead. Hopkins has a terrific fund-raising group which Georgetown could learn from and emulate. I had a wonderful education at Georgetown and loved my time there, but I would never give the school a dime based upon my horrific experience with the fund-raising personnel and the president.

Arthur E. Gowran, Esq.

But you had the last laugh when you went on to become the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from Georgetown and tried to give the school a substantial gift. My experience with the individuals in the fund-raising group was a total disaster. They did not want to accommodate me in terms of my intentions for the gift. One member of the group was rude and insulted me. I subsequently met the director of the fund-raising department who was dismissive of one of my complaints. I wrote two letters of complaint to the president of the university and never received a response. So there you have it! I established two endowed perpetual funds at Johns Hopkins Medicine instead. Hopkins has a terrific fund-raising group which Georgetown could learn from and emulate. I had a wonderful education at Georgetown and loved my time there, but I would never give the school a dime based upon my horrific experience with the fund-raising personnel and the president.

Arthur E. Gowran, Esq.

But you had the last laugh when you went on to become the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire.

i love dcum

well technically worf had the last laugh!

[Anonymous]

I guess that's what happens when you sell your soul to international jetset trash and become milquetoast Catholics. Meanwhile in flyover country Notre Dame in thriving.

[Anonymous]

A Hoya who loved the university and gives regularly. And there are a bunch of GU men and women I admire and respect. Patrick Ewing for one. Bill Clinton for another. Even the late Antonin Scalia. But not the Trump kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess that's what happens when you sell your soul to international jetset trash and become milquetoast Catholics. Meanwhile in flyover country Notre Dame in thriving.

Meh. Pretty much the same to the rest of the world

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD turned down CMU because the buildings were in such a state of disrepair. She thought the buildings were beautiful but falling down. Of course, it didn't help that the students seemed depressed and overworked. Her classmate enrolled and, while she likes the school, she is stressed. I know everyone rants about how the luxuries are a waste of money but when you turn off students because of a lack of upkeep, you are going to far in the other direction.

Cmu dorms are disgusting and filthy. I don't expect wake forest or Princeton level accommodations but come on.

Princeton doesn't have nice dorms. People don't go to Princeton for the dorms.

Same at Brown. I was in a dorm built in 1910 and it was pretty much original when I was there. In the winter, the cast iron radiators would get the room around 80 degrees and dry as the Death Valley. There was no AC and the humidity was so high that I had a hard time putting a bra on. The bed itself and the bathrooms looked like they were taken from an insane asylum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD turned down CMU because the buildings were in such a state of disrepair. She thought the buildings were beautiful but falling down. Of course, it didn't help that the students seemed depressed and overworked. Her classmate enrolled and, while she likes the school, she is stressed. I know everyone rants about how the luxuries are a waste of money but when you turn off students because of a lack of upkeep, you are going to far in the other direction.

Cmu dorms are disgusting and filthy. I don't expect wake forest or Princeton level accommodations but come on.

Princeton doesn't have nice dorms. People don't go to Princeton for the dorms.

Would you want your kid to go a college full of students that are concerned about nice forms? That is a turn-off.

[Anonymous]

Dorms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it has a lot to with community. Besides basketball, GTown doesn't really have much that bonds students together. Everyone I know that went there wanted to be president or a big shot on WS, so maybe there's an emphasis on individual goals?

Sounds like NYU with its low endowment. Big sports schools build spirit.

Explain WashU and Emory, and Rice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown feels like it's fading, slowly...

The acceptance rate keeps dropping however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD turned down CMU because the buildings were in such a state of disrepair. She thought the buildings were beautiful but falling down. Of course, it didn't help that the students seemed depressed and overworked. Her classmate enrolled and, while she likes the school, she is stressed. I know everyone rants about how the luxuries are a waste of money but when you turn off students because of a lack of upkeep, you are going to far in the other direction.

Cmu dorms are disgusting and filthy. I don't expect wake forest or Princeton level accommodations but come on.

Princeton doesn't have nice dorms. People don't go to Princeton for the dorms.

Same at Brown. I was in a dorm built in 1910 and it was pretty much original when I was there. In the winter, the cast iron radiators would get the room around 80 degrees and dry as the Death Valley. There was no AC and the humidity was so high that I had a hard time putting a bra on. The bed itself and the bathrooms looked like they were taken from an insane asylum.

Well Brown doesn't have the capital to update their dorms. My kid's school (won't name it here) has updated most of the older dorms built in the early 20th century and while they still have the charming architecture outside, the inside is modern and beautiful. Also has built many new dorms that are more like fancy hotels. This is a top 20 school.