U.S. colleges and universities hold hundreds of billions of dollars in endowments. In congressional hearings and in academic literature, some have argued that certain college and university endowments have grown very large without a concurrent increase in the use of endowment proceeds to reduce the cost of attending those schools. The topic of college affordability continues to be an issue of great concern and many are concerned that increases in the cost of college may be discouraging large numbers of individuals, particularly minority and low income individuals, from pursing higher education. This book provides information about endowments that will help inform policymakers and others as they consider college and university endowment issues.