"Diversification previously worked very well for large endowments, " said John S. Griswold, the executive director of the Commonfund.

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The Commonfund, which invests for various nonprofit organizations, says just 15% of the 708 endowments it polled last year held any commodities.

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"The market two months ago was fearing a double dip, " said Michael Strauss, chief economist and chief investment strategist at Commonfund in Wilton, Conn.

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John Griswold of Commonfund thinks that some investment committees, stuffed with alumni, may be starting to lose track of the risks their endowments are taking.

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Michael Strauss, chief investment strategist at Commonfund, in Wilton, Conn.

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As for foundations and operating charities, says Commonfund, they also fared poorly, finishing the 2011 calendar year in slightly negative terriory and lagging the broader stock and bond markets.

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"Gold doesn't produce any income or have a yield, and you have to pay to store it, so people are still suspicious of it, " said John Griswold, executive director of Commonfund Institute.

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"Diversification previously worked very well for large endowments, " says John S. Griswold, executive director of the Commonfund, who noted that Harvard and Yale still have the two largest endowments in the country.

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