Claremont Graduate University

Claremont Graduate University

Claremont Graduate University was founded in 1925 as the graduate institution within the seven-college Claremont consortium. The endowment, now chaired by Laila Pence of Pence Wealth Management, supports a research-focused mission that has recently faced significant financial headwinds. Board Chair Jeanne Holm, a former Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles, oversees governance alongside Vice Chairs Deron Marquez and Juanita Dawson. The endowment deploys capital across venture stages, from pre-seed and seed to Series A rounds, with confirmed interest in sectors such as EdTech, ClimateTech, FinTech, and Robotics & Automation. The investment approach blends direct allocations with a wide campus-based asset footprint — including the Ron W. Burkle Building and Oasis Residential Commons — tying financial strategy to physical plant decisions across the consortium and broader North American opportunities. A consortium member alongside Pomona College and Scripps College, CGU shares resources through The Claremont Colleges Services. In 2024, Scripps College purchased the CGU Art Building, realigning property holdings internally. In December 2025, the university entered exclusive negotiations with Pomona College for a strategic partnership or acquisition (Altss research), signaling a structural shift that may reshape how the approximately $200M (Altss estimate) endowment is governed and deployed. CGU’s distinct structure as a graduate-only institution within a consortium of undergraduate-focused colleges creates a unique endowment mandate. Unlike its peers, its capital supports no undergraduate programs, allowing investment and operational decisions — including real asset sales and potential mergers — to be calibrated entirely to graduate research and doctoral output.