Amy Falls

With over 30 years of investment management experience across all asset classes, Amy Falls has one of the best performance records of CIOs in the education endowment space. Currently, she serves as the Chief Investment Officer of Northwestern University, overseeing its $14.0 billion endowment, one of the largest university endowments currently run by a woman. Prior to joining Northwestern in 2021, she served as CIO of Rockefeller University, where she restructured and managed the investment office for a $2.3 billion university endowment and generated top decile results among endowments greater than $1 billion. As one of the foremost thought leaders in the endowment space with one of the strongest performance records, Amy also supports the foundation pillars of education and equity by serving on the boards or finance committees of several organizations, some with comparable or larger endowments to Northwestern’s. Combined, she oversees or influences the allocation of more than $90 billion in assets, almost all of which is mission-or access-focused.

Press

The Daily Northwestern: Outgoing University President Michael Schill earned nearly $1.7 million in first full year, tax filings show

Markets Group: 2026 Elite Institutional CIOs, Part I

Barron’s: This Couple Oversees Billions in Assets. We Caught Up With Them.

Pensions & Investments: Northwestern University CIO says distinction between public and private equity not necessary

Pensions & Investments: Will private credit pass the test in a bankruptcy cycle? Northwestern University CIO Amy Falls has questions.

Forbes: Former Partners From Index, Bessemer, A16z Raise $350 Million For New VC Firm Chemistry

Bloomberg: Northwestern CIO Building Cash Reserves, Trimming Private Equity

Bloomberg: Northwestern CIO Warns of 'Destructive' Tax on University Funds

Pensions & Investments: Brown and Northwestern Endowments Turn to Secondary Markets

Boards

MacArthur Foundation – Member
(2024 – Present)

Peter G. Peterson Foundation – Member
(2016 – Present)

Harvard Management Company – Board Member
(2015 – Present)

Ford Foundation – Board Member
(2013 – Present)

Phillips Academy Andover – Chairman of Board of Trustees
(2011 – Present)

The Land Preserve – Trustee and Chair of Investment Committee
(2018 – Present)

Peterson Institute of International Economics – Investment Committee
(2014 - 2018)

The Brearley School – Trustee
(2007 – 2013)

The Diller-Quaile School of Music – Trustee
(2003 – 2009)

Awards

Institutional Investor:
Team of the Year (2023)

Pension & Investments: Inaugural Class of Influential Women in Institutional Investing (2023)

Citizens Committee for New York City’s: Osborne Elliott Award for Community Leadership (2020)

Trusted Insight’s Top 30 Most Influential Women in University Endowments (2015)

Rising Star of Foundations and Endowments by Institutional Investor (2010)