by Gabriella Farrell '21
A pair of investment experts will discuss Dickinson’s endowment, the role it plays in the financial well-being of the college and the possibility of moving towards a more sustainable endowment. The conversation, “Sustainable Endowment?,” will take place Thursday, Oct. 11, at 3 p.m. in Rubendall Recital Hall, Weiss Center for the Arts.
Panelists will explain how Dickinson’s endowment is currently managed and discuss the potential for Dickinson to join a growing movement of colleges that invest their endowments in sustainable ways that support community values regarding corporate behavior, social justice, environmental stewardship and other issues. Panelists include Sarah Kolansky, associate director of sustainability at Graham Partners, and Rob Symington, Dickinson alumnus and member of the Dickinson Board of Trustees’ investment committee.
Since she joined Graham Partners in 2017, Kolansky has been supporting the firm’s sustainability initiatives. She also handles environmental, social and governance matters across the firm’s investment portfolio. Kolansky works with portfolio companies on various sustainability initiatives such as evaluating sustainable alternatives to traditional manufacturing processes. Kolansky is pursuing her master’s degree in environmental studies from the University of Pennsylvania.
Symington is a senior advisor to the Avenue Capital Group and a senior lecturer of finance at the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. Prior to joining Avenue, he was the chief investment officer of the Resurgence Funds at M.D. Sass Investment Services. Symington also serves on the board of three private companies: NextWave Wireless, Inc., All-American Poker Network and CycloPure, Inc.
The event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the President’s Office, Dickinson Sustainable Investment Group, Board of Trustees, Office of Finance & Administration and the Center for Sustainability Education.
Published September 24, 2018