Western Washington University’s board has committed to changing how the university’s funds are invested and disclosing its investments, fulfilling some asks by student protesters involved in last spring’s pro-Palestine demonstrations.
The policy passed on Friday, April 11 states Western funds should not be invested in companies connected to fossil fuels, tobacco, weapons and human rights violations (defined as “acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, modern slavery, Indigenous rights violations, and other activities that violate safety, security and fundamental human rights”).
The Board of Trustees committed to following Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) and Environmental, Social and Governance Investing (ESG) practices. The university has $78 million invested in fixed-income assets outside of the Foundation for WWU & Alumni’s portfolio, said Jonathan Higgins, director of communications.
The new SRI policy does not apply to funds invested by the foundation, which manages the university’s $144.2 million endowment. Western’s board cannot compel the foundation, a separate entity, to follow the new policy.
However, Kim O’Neill, the CEO of the foundation and the vice president for university advancement, said at a February meeting that the foundation’s board has hired a contractor to review its current investment policy to align with socially responsible investing. She said the board expects to have a revised policy by May.
“We are running parallel, essentially, to this committee with the university. So just want to be really clear that [the board is] also thinking in this way,” she said in February.
Soon, the university’s investment portfolio will be published on the committee’s website as part of the “proactive transparency and accessibility” commitment in the policy.
Western students, faculty and staff will then be able to request the university divest from specific holdings. For a review to be considered, the proposal would need to have at least two of the following: an endorsement from the Associated Students, an endorsement from the Faculty Senate or petitions signed by a “broad coalition of students, faculty, alumni or staff.”
“This was a culmination of over a decade of student and faculty activism,” said Liam Pratt, a student who sits on the committee. “The committee was a great thing to be a part of it and I’m very stoked, to put it lightly, on what this committee and policy can achieve.”
The board also approved a recommendation to separate the fund value of Western’s 1988 Distinguished Professorship Trust Fund from the foundation’s core portfolio and reinvest those funds — about $15 million — following the new socially responsible investing policy.
However, the Board tabled a recommendation from the committee to remove the foundation’s voting role on the committee. Franklin said the foundation would still sit in an ex-officio role, but said the foundation, due to the way its investments work, is not able to provide the transparency that the policy is asking of the university.
Franklin said the foundation’s security-level holdings are not even seen by its board members.
“I think it is optically awkward and procedurally hypocritical in appearance, at least, for the foundation to be voting on behalf of what is an appropriate application of SRI at the university and yet retain their hands-off attitude towards SRI with respect to their investments,” Franklin said.
The board opted to table the conversation, as Chair Faith Pettis said they needed more time to discuss, and didn’t want to “jeopardize” the university’s relationship with the foundation by taking away its vote.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
