Good Night, Poor Harvard

As an investment manager, are you just average, maybe a bit below average? Take heart. You still beat Harvard.

For the five years ending last June 30, the annualized investment return for Harvard's endowment was 1.7%. No Ivy League institution did worse.

Jane L. Medillo, the endowment's manager, will leave at the end of the year. She once worked at Yale, where David Swensen for many years achieved remarkable investment results. Lately, not so much. For the five years ending last June, Yale's endowment had an annualized return of 3.3%.