As the implications of the 2008–09 financial crisis for the world economy and markets have become clearer, many foundation executives and investment committees are reassessing their approach to endowment management. In a new essay, Commonwealth Fund Executive Vice President and COO John E. Craig, Jr., M.P.A., reports on the effects of the recent turmoil on foundation endowments thus far, and offers lessons from this crisis and earlier ones that could help boards and investment committees responsible for foundation endowments avoid mistakes going forward.