SPRINGFIELD, IL – Teachers’ Retirement System has engaged Lenox Park Solutions, of Austin, Texas, to help develop a standardized metric scoring tool for diversity, equity and inclusion when analyzing potential investment opportunities and monitoring existing relationships.

Founded in 2010, Lenox Park provides diversity consulting services for numerous institutional investors, businesses and money managers.

The selection of Lenox Park is part of a broader “re-imagining” of the System’s successful diversity efforts that include an increase in diversity hiring across asset classes; an update of internal diversity selection metrics; and better measurement and monitoring of diversity and inclusion practices within money management firms.

In the last five years, the total assets in the TRS portfolio managed by Minority and Women Business Enterprises has increased from $8.2 billion to $15.4 billion. In each of the last five years, TRS has exceeded its annual aspirational goal to have 20 percent of total assets managed by MWBE firms. Currently, TRS commitments to MWBE firms total $15.4 billion, or 24.7 percent of the System’s total portfolio, which preliminarily was $62.9 billion at the end of June.

During its regularly scheduled June meeting, the Board of Trustees also set new long-term and interim asset allocation targets for the investment of TRS funds. The trustees regularly analyze the economy and investment markets to decide the System’s investment priorities across several asset classes. Here are the new TRS asset allocation targets:

The Board also reviewed the following investment actions:

• Within the System’s $9.2 billion Private Equity Portfolio:
  • The commitment of $100 million to MBK Partners, of Seoul South Korea. MBK currently manages $371.4 million in TRS assets.
  • The Commitment of $175 million to TA Associates, of Boston, Massachusetts in two funds. The first is $50 million to TA Associates Select Opportunities Fund II. The second is $125 million to TA XIV. TA Associates currently administers $205 million in TRS assets.
  • The commitment of $150 million to Stone Point Capital, of Greenwich, Connecticut. Stone Point currently manages $314 million in TRS assets.
  • The commitment of $25 million to Avance Investment Management, of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS. Avance is a Minority or Women-owned Business Enterprise.
  • The commitment of €50 million to Bregal Unternehmercapital, of Munich, Germany. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $40 million to FinTech Collective, of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $100 million to Insight Partners, of New York, New York. Insight currently administers $12.5 million in assets for TRS.
  • The commitment of $75 million to Providence Strategic Growth Capital Partners, of Providence Rhode Island. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $100 million to Thomas H. Lee Partners, of Boston, Massachusetts. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
• Within the System’s $9.1 billion Real Assets Portfolio:
  • The commitment of up to $300 million to The Carlyle Group, of Washington, D.C. Carlyle currently administers $143 million in TRS assets.
  • The commitment of $250 million to Walton Street Capital, of Chicago. Walton Street currently administers $54.3 million in TRS assets.
  • The commitment of up to $200 million to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
• Within the $15.7 billion Income Portfolio:
  • The commitment of $125 million to Arbour Lane Capital management, of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $75 million to Basis Investment Group, of New York, New York. Basis currently manages $33 million of TRS assets. Basis is a Minority or Women-owned Business Enterprise.
  • The commitment of $250 million to Pacific Investment Management Company, of Newport Beach, California in two funds. The first is $100 million to the PIMCO Horseshoe Fund and the second is $150 million to the PIMCO BRAVO IV Fund. PIMCO currently administers $2.2 billion in TRS assets.
  • The commitment of $150 million to Pretium Partners, of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $250 million to TRS Coriolis, LP, a custom fund managed for TRS by Aksia, Inc. of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $85 million to CapitalSpring Investment Partners, of Nashville, Tennessee. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The commitment of $75 million to PGIM, Inc., of Newark, New Jersey. Currently, PGIM administers $2.8 billion in assets for TRS.
  • The commitment of $125 million to SLR Capital, of New York, New York. SLR currently administers $45.5 million in assets for TRS.
  • An additional commitment of $150 million to Beach Point Capital Management, of Santa Monica, California. Beach Point currently administers $418.5 million in TRS assets.
  • An additional commitment of $175 million to Apollo Global Management, of New York, New York. Apollo currently administers $573 million in TRS assets.
  • An additional commitment of $25 million to Cerberus Capital Management, of New York, New York. Cerberus currently administers $206 million in TRS assets.
  • An additional commitment of $25 million to TerraCotta Group of El Segundo, California. TerraCotta currently administers $75.3 million in TRS assets. TerraCotta is a Minority or Women-owned Business Enterprise.
• Within the $5.6 billion Diversifying Strategies Portfolio:
  • The commitment of $200 million to Maniyar Capital Advisors, of London, United Kingdom. This is a new investment relationship for TRS. Maniyar is a Minority or Women-owned Business Enterprise.
  • The commitment of $200 million to Taconic Capital Advisors, of New York, New York. This is a new investment relationship for TRS.
  • The partial redemption of $115 million from Tilden Park Capital Management, of New York, New York. Tilden currently administers $292 million in TRS assets.

About Teachers’ Retirement System

The Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois is the 40^th largest pension system in the United States, and provides retirement, disability and survivor benefits to teachers, administrators and other public school personnel employed outside of Chicago. The System serves 427,000 members and had assets of $62.9 billion as of June 30, 2021.