Three-quarters of college and university endowments increased spending to support their mission – by an average 8.1 percent – last year following another weak year for investments returns. Returns for college and university endowments averaged -1.9 percent for the fiscal year ending in June, compared with an average 2.4 percent in 2015. The negative return dragged 10-year returns to 5 percent, down from 6.3 percent in 2015.