In Education: Questions About a $10-Million Pledge; Yale’s Endowment Grows 21.9%

Seven years after receiving a $10-million pledge from a billionaire donor, Sacramento State University is still waiting for most of the money, according to Capitol Weekly, a newspaper that covers California government and politics.

The institution has already started to develop a sports complex that it expected to pay for in part with a 2004 gift from Alex G. Spanos, a developer and majority owner of the San Diego Chargers.

Kevin Wehr, a Sacramento State assistant professor and the university’s representative to the California Faculty Association, said he was told “by people who are in a position to know” that the university has received only a fraction of the donation.

University officials confirmed that not all of the money has been paid but declined to discuss details, saying the pledge agreement with Mr. Spanos was confidential because it was forged with a campus auxiliary organization.

A new state law that requires greater disclosure by nonprofit groups affiliated with California’s public universities takes effect January 1.

In other education news:

• Yale University’s endowment posted a 21.9 percent gain for the year ending June 30, increasing to $19.4-billion, writes The New York Times.

The Yale fund gained 8.9 percent on its investments last year, lagging behind other major colleges, and fell 24.6 percent in 2009. Yale’s fiscal 2011 showing was better than the average for endowments and foundations but well below the stock market’s 32 percent gain.

Yale pioneered the diversification of endowment assets into areas such as hedge funds and private equity and is considered a bellwether for that approach. The institution’s 10-year average investment gain of 10.1 percent remains higher than that of comparable universities, including Harvard, which has seen 9.4 percent average returns.

• The University Massachusetts is planning $3.1-billion in new construction, despite carrying substantial debt from previous capital projects, The Boston Globe reports.

The university’s trustees approved plans Wednesday to build and renovate science labs, residence halls, and sports facilities.

Past campus construction has been largely financed by debt and private donations, but the new program calls for the state to nearly double its share of the cost of such work to 29 percent.