University of Richmond

University of Richmond

The University of Richmond's endowment, tracing its roots to the institution's 1830 founding, operates as a distinct asset management entity through Spider Management Company. President Kevin F. Hallock leads the university, but the investment engine runs under William H. McLean, who serves as both President and CIO of Spider — a structure elevated by his prior tenure as Northwestern's CIO. The endowment blends the long-term capital horizon of a private liberal arts institution with an active, externally oriented investment posture. Spider manages a multi-asset-class pool that reaches into real estate, private credit, and hedge funds, with an explicit real-assets allocation spanning both the campus footprint and global markets. The university's property holdings include the main campus at 410 Westhampton Way, UR Downtown at 626 E. Broad St., and a portfolio of residential assets. On the alternatives side, McLean formalized access through The Richmond Fund, LP — an investment vehicle designed to let unaffiliated non-profits co-invest alongside the endowment, effectively turning into a platform that shares deal flow with peer institutions like The Citadel Foundation and Maymont Foundation, where board member David Lyons serves as Treasurer. The endowment's scale sits in the $3.0 billion to $3.5 billion range (Altss estimate), placing it within the mid-tier of national private-university pools. Its governance extends into professional networks including NACUBO, Commonfund, and the Intentional Endowments Network, where it holds a Gold AASHE STARS sustainability rating. The board includes H. Hiter Harris III, co-founder of Harris Williams, affirming deep ties to the private capital and advisory ecosystem in the Mid-Atlantic. In 2021, McLean's arrival marked a structural reset, refocusing the office on external limited-partner aggregation and direct private-market participation. The differentiator is The Richmond Fund, LP — an explicit co-investment platform for external non-profits, uncommon among liberal-arts endowments of this size. That hybrid architecture lets Spider punch above its AUM weight by compounding its capital base with aligned institutional partners, creating a sourcing channel that resembles a club model more than a traditional endowment's gatekeeper posture. The endowment's relationship with entities like the Maymont Foundation and The Citadel Foundation signals a deliberate strategy of local-institution coalition-building to access larger commitments and direct private deals.