Investment Objectives
The financial objectives for the Athens Area Community Foundation’s investments are:
- To create a growing stream of income which will support the charitable purposes of the Athens Area Community Foundation, its donors, and its agency endowments
- To preserve the purchasing power of the Athens Area Community Foundation’s assets
These objectives dictate that the Athens Area Community Foundation conserves and prudently manages those assets. The perpetual nature of the Athens Area Community Foundation requires a growing asset base and a growing annual return.
The primary investment objective for the total portfolio is to attain an average annual real total return (net of investment management fees) of at least 5% over the long term (rolling five year periods). While the real return objective may be difficult to attain in every five year period, it should be attainable over a series of five year periods.
Every effort is made to minimize portfolio management expense. Current expense ratios average .69% compared to the industry average of 1.19%.
Investment Oversight
The Athens Area Community Foundation’s Board of Directors is responsible for the oversight of investment assets and delegates regular review and management of investments to the finance committee of the board, which meets at least quarterly and reports to the full board at its next regularly scheduled meeting.
The finance committee is responsible for contracting with investment advisors and managers for investing the Athens Area Community Foundation’s assets and for measuring performance of the investments.
The Athens Area Community Foundation works with a number of financial managers who provide investment and estate planning advice to their clients. These advisors follow a set of guidelines provided by us that are recertified annually. Significant donors may recommend a money manager provided they follow the general guidelines for managers outlined in our investment policy.
Investment Strategy
The Athens Area Community Foundation’s assets are allocated by a schedule that is established by the Finance Committee and approved by our board.
For individually managed accounts, we prefer selected mutual funds managed by American Funds/Capital Group. The majority of our investable assets are invested in an Equity Pool (65%) and a Fixed Income Pool (35%). Individual Equity, Fixed Income, and Balanced Funds may also be used provided they follow the approved fund mix.
No securities may be purchased on margin and no short selling is permitted. The Athens Area Community Foundation does not invest in alternatives, futures, or options.
Audits and IRS Returns
The Athens Area Community Foundation is fully audited each year by an independent CPA firm. Audits are available for public inspection. Our fiscal year is July 1 through June 30. IRS Form 990 is on file at our office and is available for public inspection.
Investment Performance
Our investments consistently outperform the investments of other community foundations over time.
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