(updated with correction)
Chicago Public School Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund selected Callan Associates and NEPC as finalists for general investment consultant to replace Mercer, according to Kevin Huber, executive director of the $8.3 billion fund.
Also, the fund narrowed its search for specialty consultants for private equity to Cliffwater and PCG Asset Management and for real estate to Townsend as well as specialists within Callan and NEPC for both alternative asset classes.
Mercer announced in October it will stop advising U.S. public defined benefit plans. Townsend is the fund's real estate consultant; the fund doesn't have a private equity consultant.
Chicago teachers' fund trustees are considering the specialty divisions within Callan and NEPC to determine how they compare with the specialty consulting firms, Mr. Huber said in an e-mailed response to questions. Trustees want to “see if we can just go with one provider (for both general investment and specialty consulting) or to determine if we need to go with specialists,” he added.
Trustees are meeting Thursday, but Mr. Huber doesn't know whether they will make any consultant selections then.
The fund has $543 million in real estate, and $220 million each in public REITs and private equity.