A gift to Cornell in 1994 made it possible for Olivia Cotton ’26 to attend Cornell, where her experience has been life-changing. One hundred years from now that same gift will continue to make life-changing experiences possible, though we can only guess what such an experience will be in 2125.
Such is the power of the endowment.
Cornell’s endowment is an essential part of who we are now and who we are in the future. It’s the single most important indicator of institutional strength. In 2024 Cornell’s endowment reached the $100 million mark. This is an exciting milestone, and yet, it is smaller than most U.S. college endowments. We continue to build ours in order to provide the best possible experience for our current and future students.
Just what does the endowment really do? President Brand and CFO Kelly Flege answer that question in their joint article.
And how does it affect our faculty and students? These stories show four ways the endowment is at work on the Hilltop:
