Harvard's endowment takes $8 billion hit

22 percent decline is sharpest drop in the school's modern history

Video: Education

Singer’s school fosters kids’ love of arts
Nov. 15: He left his heart in San Francisco, but Tony Bennett is making a difference back in his old neighborhood, giving students a chance to embrace their passions. NBC’s Lester Holt reports.

Panel: Schools must get dramatically better

High school bans the word 'meep'

Meltdown over 'Chocolate Santa'

George W. Bush introduces Bush Institute

Breaking news alerts (about 1 per day)
Click here to sign up or text NEWS to MSNBC (67622).

Find more alerts at alerts.msnbc.com

NBC Field Notes

NBC News correspondents and producers across the U.S. shed light on the news of the day.

Photo features

Reuters	The Week in Pictures Monsoon floods in Malaysia, darkened streets in Brazil and celebratory lights in Germany highlight this collection of noteworthy images.
AP	PhotoBlog View and discuss the pictures and issues that caught our eyes.

updated 9:07 a.m. ET Dec. 3, 2008

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard University says its endowment has tumbled $8 billion in the four months since the end of the last fiscal year.

The estimated 22 percent decline is the school's sharpest endowment drop in modern history. The endowment was valued at $36.9 billion on June 30.

According to a letter to deans from university heads, Harvard must take a "hard look" at staffing levels and compensation. They're also forecasting a 30 percent drop for the fiscal year ending in June 2009.

Story continues below ↓

advertisement | your ad here

The school has said its U.S. stock portfolio and foreign equity portfolio had taken hard hits recently. The school's endowment is the largest in higher education.

Click for related content

Study: 49 states flunk college affordability

The university's president warns that the estimated drop may be conservative because some money managers that have yet to report figures.

More on Harvard University