Polar Capital has continued its expansion in North America with the appointment of Morgan Lee as a business development director, the specialist active asset management firm announced. Lee will be responsible for covering the West Coast, specifically west of the Rockies, and he will be based in California and report to Alastair Barrie, managing director for North America, who leads a four-member team that includes fellow business development directors Adam Schneider and David Smithwick, the firm said. Lee’s hire is part of London-based Polar Capital’s broader strategy to strengthen its global ..read more

The $1.1 billion City of Miami Beach (Fla.) Pension Fund for Firefighters & Police Officers is conducting a review of potential general investment consultants, according to live video of today’s board meeting. The plan’s board has asked staff to gather information on the satisfaction level other pension plans have with their respective consultants as well as fee information. The board preferred not to conduct an RFP process as it discussed next steps as current consultant Mariner Institutional’s contract is set to expire on Sept. 30. “I’ve been satisfied with the service and the quality th ..read more

The $5.8 billion Milwaukee Employees’ Retirement System disclosed a new core real estate manager hire at today’s investment committee meeting, according to live video. Harrison Street has been added to the plan’s private real estate portfolio after initially being hired at a Nov. 28 board meeting following a recommendation from the committee in closed session. The plan is slated to fund the hire this year as the result of a new real estate manager structure that factored in its implementation of the then undisclosed firm at a June 27 board meeting. The structure was first approved by the commi ..read more

The $25.6 billion Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana is searching for an investment manager of private markets. The plan is searching for an individual to assist Private Markets Director Adam Averite with conducting portfolio due diligence, meeting with prospective fund managers, performing portfolio reviews, reporting and analysis of current portfolio, analyzing investment data from managers and enhancing, implementing and maintaining alternative asset and real estate software and custodial systems, according to a posting on the Government Jobs website. Interested parties may send their ..read more

The City of Tamarac (Fla.) has issued an RFP seeking investment advisory services for its $24.7 million long-term investment portfolio. The city is seeking a firm to manage the portfolio daily, develop cash flow projections, provide monthly statements on investment activity, earnings and the portfolio’s value as well as quarterly and annual reports and provide recommendations for the city to revise its current investment policy to maximize yield while ensuring liquidity and preservation of principal, according to the RFP. Public Trust Advisors was previously hired to manage the long-term portf ..read more

The $37.6 billion Employees Retirement System of Texas has launched its search for investment consulting services. The purpose of the RFQ is to contract with multiple firms in seven service categories: investment practices and performance reporting, general investment, private equity, private real estate, private infrastructure, private credit and hedge fund consulting services, according to the project description. The plan has been expected to launch the consultant search and currently works with general investment consultant NEPC, which will see its contract expire in December 2024, as well ..read more

University of Notre Dame has named its next investment head as CIO Mike Donovan is set to retire in the coming months. The South Bend, Ind.-based university has named Managing Director Timothy Dolezal as its cio to oversee its approximately $18.9 billion endowment effective July 1 as Donovan will step down on June 30 after leading the investment team since 2020 and working in the investment office for the last 27 years, a spokesperson confirmed, in an e-mail. “Mike is a great investor and talented leader who leaves the Investment Office’s team, process, cultu ..read more

Truman State University has rehired PFM Asset Management as its investment manager for its $76.4 million operating funds portfolio after a search, according to documents. The Kirksville, Mo.-based university’s board of trustees selected the incumbent during its April 6 meeting, following recommendations from a selection committee, which received a total of 13 proposals to an RFP released earlier this year, according to meeting agenda materials. “PFM Asset Management’s references were excellent, and its references included other Missouri public institutions similar to Truman. PFM Asset Man ..read more

Nearly half of the 50 wealthiest public and private higher education endowments, representing $566 billion in total assets, refused to participate in a continued assessment of the representation of women- and racial or ethnic minority-owned investment firms overseeing their portfolios, new research finds. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and New York University’s Stern Center for Business and Human Rights released a continuation of their 2022 interim study on the diversity of higher education’s asset managers and found that just 18 institutions fully participated by providing data fo ..read more

The Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust Fund has launched a search for U.S. direct lending managers for its approximately $1.7 billion portfolio. The Oklahoma City-based fund is looking for an evergreen direct lending vehicle that “will target outperformance versus both a relevant market benchmark and a peer group of comparable direct-lending funds,” according to its general investment consultant NEPC, which posted about the search on its website.  The fund expects to commit approximately $60 million to $100 million “to one or more U.S. Direct Lending managers ..read more