Cornell University has lost $1.45 billion of its endowment in the second half of 2008—due to "reduced state funding, endowment losses and a drop in donations" according to Bloomberg News—so now the school is cutting $50 million from the Ithaca campus budget and $13 million from the medical school here in NYC. The News also reports, "Undergraduates at the university's 10 privately endowed colleges will pay 4% more next year - sending tuition to a whopping $37,750. Tuition at four other Cornell colleges that receive state funding will rise by 7.2%, bringing the total to $21,610 for instate residents." NYU also announced its endowment lost 19%, bringing it to about $2 billion. The NY Times notes that college endowments "fell about 23 percent on average in the five months ended Nov. 30." more ›

NYU kids now have a new sticking point to convince their parents to fork over money for a deposit so they can move to Williamsburg. In a move that school officials say will divert $25 million into academic programs, NYU is scaling back on security around the downtown university. Today's Post reports that gone are overnight guards for two administration buildings--two of school's six "green buildings," spots that were kept open all night as safe havens for any students who felt threatened. One student points out, "This area around Washington Square Park has a lot of shady characters." The move to slash the security budget comes just after a new study named NYU the third highest-priced university in the nation at just over $50,000 in total yearly costs. more ›