Cambridge Associates and Alliance Bernstein will continue to manage the University’s investments for another term of five years after the UH-System Board of Regents voted unanimously.
The specially called meeting lasted approximately 16 minutes on Wednesday and had only two agenda items.
"The full board meeting was short, but sometimes they are when they are a specially called meeting that addresses a limited agenda," Eric Gerber, director of UH communications, said. "But there was a two-hour meeting just before the full board – and that was the Endowment Management Committee meeting."
The special meeting was called because the deadline to finalize a contract with a financial and investment firm was about to expire.
Before the board convened for the meeting, the endowment management committee met with the rest of the board in a closed two-and-a-half-hour conference.
During the endowment management committee’s closed meeting, regents Michael Cemo and Jim Wise reported their findings of 12 financial firms as potential investment consultants over the University’s assets.
Regents Morgan Dunn O’Connor and Calvin W. Stephens were also on the committee. One firm, Hirtle, Callhan ‘ Co., was "disqualified for lack of responsiveness" to the board’s inquiries, according to the endowment management committee’s agenda.
According to the agenda, the committee ranked Cambridge Associates in the top position because "their cost is significantly less than the next four highest-rated firms," which ranged between $229,500 and $387,500 annually. For the next five years, the cost for Cambridge Associates will be $1.15 million.
Alliance Bernstein, an investment management firm, was also voted to stay for an extended term of five years until 2012.
At the last board meeting on Aug. 16, regent Welcome Wilson was voted to chairman and regents Wise and Stephens were voted to vice chairman and secretary, respectively. Officially sworn in during the meeting by Wise’s son, Harris County 152nd District Civil Court Judge Ken Wise, the new roles became effective Sept. 1.
