The return of college endowments from the depths of the market earlier this decade continued to gain momentum. Endowments returned an average of 10.7 percent in the 2006 fiscal year, up from the previous year's return of 9.3 percent. The largest endowments earned the best returns, allowing the wealthiest of colleges to put even more distance…

Over the last decade, almost all of the country's 1,100 community colleges have begun fund raising, some with great success. They are beginning to compete with larger institutions for foundation money. The money supplements operating budgets, and many colleges are building endowments that enable them to offer scholarships and keep student costs…

A national survey of 346 private and 162 public colleges found that the number of institution with billion-dollar endowments grew from 25 to 31, and that all responding institutions had at least some return on investments, ranging from 3.7% to 38% The greatest change was an increase in the amount of money invested in hedge funds. (MSE)