Contrary to some published reports, Vanderbilt's endowment decreased by a comparatively small amount of 16.5 percent.

According to a press release from the Vanderbilt News Service, the endowment shrunk from $3.5 billion last June to $2.9 billion.

Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Beth Fortune said the loss, which was smaller than the 22.9 percent decline reported by the 435 respondents to an endowment survey conducted by the National Association of College and University Business Officers, was due to strategic decisions about certain investments.

"It owes a great deal of credit to Vice Chancellor of Investments Mathew Wright, who manages the endowment, and the leadership of Chancellor Zeppos," said Fortune. "It shows that Vanderbilt is in a solid and stable position compared to many other colleges in the country."

The endowment funds about 5 percent of the university's annuals operations. Cost-cutting measures have been adapted by the university, among them a halt to new construction products and most departments reducing their budgets to preserve cash. "It is still a time to prudent and to carefully make decisions," Fortune said.

Earlier reports from The Tennessean estimated the loss of the endowment to be at around a billion dollars, almost twice as much as the actual amount. "We knew it wasn't going to be anywhere near what was previously reported," Fortune said.