497K 1 c63817_497k.htm Untitled Document

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS

FEBRUARY 1, 2011

TIAA-CREF MID-CAP GROWTH FUND

of the TIAA-CREF Funds

Class Ticker: Retail TCMGX Retirement TRGMX Premier TRGPX Institutional TRPWX

Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus and other information about the Fund online at www.tiaa-cref.org/tcfmcg.You can also get this information at no cost by calling 800 223-1200 or by sending an e-mail request to disclosure@tiaa-cref.org. The Fund’s prospectus, dated February 1, 2011, and Statement of Additional Information, dated February 1, 2011, and the sections of the Fund’s shareholder reports dated September 30, 2010 and October 31, 2010 from “Summary Portfolio of Investments” through “Notes to Financial Statements,” are incorporated into this Summary Prospectus by reference and may be obtained free of charge at the website, phone number or e-mail address noted above.

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The Fund seeks a favorable long-term total return, mainly through capital appreciation, primarily from equity securities of medium-sized domestic companies.

FEES AND EXPENSES

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund:

SHAREHOLDER FEES (deducted directly from gross amount of transaction)

         
 

Retail
Class

 

Retirement
Class

 

Premier
Class

 

Institutional
Class

 

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases
(percentage of offering price)

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested
Dividends and Other Distributions

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

Redemption or Exchange Fee

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

Account Maintenance Fee
(annual fee on accounts under $2,000)

$15.00

 

0%

 

0%

 

0%

 

TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund  ■  Summary Prospectus     1

ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

         
 

Retail Class

 

Retirement Class

 

Premier Class

 

Institutional Class

 

Management Fees

0.47%

 

0.47%

 

0.47%

 

0.47%

 

Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Fees1

0.13%

 

—

 

0.15%

 

—

 

Other Expenses

0.17%

 

0.30%

 

0.05%

 

0.05%

 

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

0.77%

 

0.77%

 

0.67%

 

0.52%

 

Waivers and Expense Reimbursements2

—

 

—

 

—

 

—

 

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement

0.77%

 

0.77%

 

0.67%

 

0.52%

 

1 The Retail Class of the Fund has adopted a Distribution (12b-1) Plan that reimburses the Fund’s distributor, Teachers Personal Investors Services, Inc. (“TPIS”), for providing distribution, promotional and shareholder services to the Retail Class shares at the annual rate of up to 0.25% of average daily net assets attributable to Retail Class shares. Because reimbursements are currently below the Retail Plan’s maximum rate, the fees shown in the chart for the Plan are estimated reimbursements for the current year.

2 Under the Fund’s expense reimbursement arrangements, the Fund’s investment adviser, Teachers Advisors, Inc. (“Advisors”), has contractually agreed to reimburse the Fund for any Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses (excluding Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and extraordinary expenses) that exceed: (i) 0.94% of average daily net assets for Retail Class shares; (ii) 0.80% of average daily net assets for Retirement Class shares; (iii) 0.70% of average daily net assets for Premier Class shares; and (iv) 0.55% of average daily net assets for Institutional Class shares of the Fund. These expense reimbursement arrangements will continue through at least February 29, 2012, unless changed with approval of the Board of Trustees.

Example

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses, before expense reimbursements, remain the same. The example assumes that the Fund’s expense reimbursement agreement will remain in place through February 29, 2012 but that there will be no waiver or expense reimbursement agreement in effect thereafter. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

             

 

Retail Class

 

Retirement Class

 

Premier Class

 

Institutional Class

 

1 Year

$

79

 

$

79

 

$

68

 

$

53

 

3 Years

$

246

 

$

246

 

$

214

 

$

167

 

5 Years

$

428

 

$

428

 

$

373

 

$

291

 

10 Years

$

954

 

$

954

 

$

835

 

$

653

 

2     Summary Prospectus  ■  TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 77% of the average value of its portfolio. During the one-month fiscal period ended October 31, 2010, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 9% of the average value of its portfolio.

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its assets in mid-cap equity securities. The Fund will invest primarily in equity securities of medium-sized domestic companies, as defined by the Fund’s benchmark index (the Russell Midcap® Growth Index), that Advisors believes present the opportunity for growth. For purposes of the 80% investment policy, the term “assets” means net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes.

Advisors looks for equity securities of companies that it believes have prospects for strong earnings or sales growth. The Fund invests in equity securities of companies that are in new areas of the economy, that have distinctive products or services and that are growing faster than the overall equity market. The Fund may also invest in companies that Advisors believes to be undervalued based on current earnings, assets or growth prospects. These investments could include companies likely to benefit from prospective acquisitions, reorganizations, corporate restructurings or other special situations.

The Fund also uses proprietary quantitative models to take positions in securities that represent modest deviations from the benchmark index based on relative value, price or potential earnings growth. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in foreign investments.

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT RISKS

You could lose money over short or long periods by investing in this Fund. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund, or the Fund’s portfolio securities, typically is subject to the following principal investment risks:

· Market Risk—The risk that market prices of securities held by the Fund may fall rapidly or unpredictably due to a variety of factors, including changing economic, political or market conditions.

· Company Risk (often called Financial Risk)—The risk that the issuer’s earnings prospects and overall financial position will deteriorate, causing a decline in the value of the security over short or extended periods of time.

TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund  ■  Summary Prospectus     3

· Foreign Investment Risk—Foreign markets can be more volatile than the U.S. market due to increased risks of adverse issuer, political, regulatory, currency, market or economic developments and can result in greater price volatility and perform differently from securities of U.S. issuers. This risk may be heightened in emerging or developing markets.

· Mid-Cap Risk—The risk that the stocks of mid-capitalization companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume, and less liquidity than the stocks of larger, more established companies.

· Small-Cap Risk—The risk that the stocks of small-capitalization companies often experience greater price volatility than large- or mid-sized companies because small-cap companies are often newer or less established than larger companies and are likely to have more limited resources, products and markets. Securities of small-cap companies are often less liquid than securities of larger companies as a result of there being a smaller market for their securities.

· Active Management Risk—The risk that securities selection by the Fund’s investment adviser could cause the Fund to underperform its benchmark index or mutual funds with similar investment objectives.

· Style Risk—The risk that use of a particular investing style (such as growth investing) may fall out of favor in the marketplace for various periods of time and result in underperformance relative to the broader market sector or significant declines in the value of the Fund’s portfolio securities.

· Risks of Growth Investing—The risks that growth stocks can perform differently from the market as a whole and other types of stocks. Growth stocks can also be more volatile, and experience sharper price fluctuations, than other stocks.

· Special Situation Risk—Stocks of companies involved in reorganizations, mergers and other special situations involve the risk that such situations may not materialize or may develop in unexpected ways. Consequently, those stocks can involve more risk than ordinary securities.

There can be no assurances that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. You should not consider the Fund to be a complete investment program. Please see the non-summary portion of the prospectus for more detailed information about the risks described above.

PAST PERFORMANCE

The following chart and table help illustrate some of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year. The bar chart shows the annual total returns of the Institutional Class of the Fund, before taxes, in each full calendar year since inception of the class. Because the expenses vary across share classes, the performance of the Institutional Class will vary from the other share classes. Below the bar chart are the best and worst returns for a calendar quarter since inception of the Institutional Class.

4     Summary Prospectus  ■  TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund

The performance table following the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns for the Institutional Class, Retirement Class, Premier Class and Retail Class over the one-year, five-year, ten-year and since-inception periods (where applicable) ended December 31, 2010, and how those returns compare to those of the Fund’s benchmark index. After-tax performance is shown only for Institutional Class shares, and after-tax returns for the other Classes of shares will vary from the after-tax returns presented for Institutional Class shares.

The returns shown below reflect previous agreements by the Fund’s investment adviser to waive or reimburse the Fund for certain fees and expenses. Without these waivers and reimbursements, the returns of the Fund would have been lower. Past performance of the Fund (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how it will perform in the future. The benchmark index listed below is unmanaged, and you cannot invest directly in the index. The returns for the index reflect no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes. For current performance information of each share class, including performance to the most recent month-end, please visit www.tiaa-cref.org.

ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE INSTITUTIONAL CLASS SHARES (%)

Best quarter: 19.86%, for the quarter ended June 30, 2009. Worst quarter: -28.66%, for the quarter ended December 31, 2008.

TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund  ■  Summary Prospectus     5

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS

For the Periods Ended December 31, 2010

          

 

One Year

 

 

Five Years

 

 

Since Inception

 

 

Institutional Class (Inception: October 1, 2002)

         

Return Before Taxes

28.50

%

 

5.37

%

 

12.15

%

 

Return After Taxes on Distributions

28.50

%

 

4.94

%

 

11.57

%

 

Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of

         

Fund Shares

18.53

%

 

4.57

%

 

10.65

%

 

Russell Mid-Cap® Growth Index

26.38

%

 

4.88

%

 

11.76

%

 

Retail Class (Inception: October 1, 2002)

         

Return Before Taxes

28.23

%

 

5.16

%

 

11.88

%

 

Retirement Class (Inception: October 1, 2002)

         

Return Before Taxes

28.20

%

 

5.10

%

 

11.84

%

 

Premier Class (Inception: September 30, 2009)

         

Return Before Taxes

28.32

%

 

5.31

%*

 

12.12

%*

 

Current performance of the Fund’s shares may be higher or lower than that shown above.

* The performance shown for the Premier Class that is prior to its inception date is based on performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class. The performance for these periods has not been restated to reflect higher expenses of the Premier Class. If those expenses had been reflected, the performance would have been lower.

After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates in effect during the periods shown and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(a), 401(k) or 403(b) plans or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). After-tax returns are shown for only one class and after-tax returns for other classes will vary.

PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT

Investment Adviser. The Fund’s investment adviser is Teachers Advisors, Inc.

Portfolio Managers. The following persons manage the Fund on a day-to-day basis:

   
   

Name:

George (Ted) Scalise, CFA

Susan Hirsch

Title:

Managing Director

Managing Director

Experience on Fund:

since 2006

since 2007

PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES

Retail Class shares are available for purchase through certain financial intermediaries or by contacting the Fund directly at 800 223-1200 or www.tiaa-cref.org. Retirement Class and Premier Class shares are generally available for purchase through employee benefit plans or other types of savings plans or accounts. Institutional Class shares are available for purchase directly from the Fund by certain eligible investors or through financial intermediaries.

6     Summary Prospectus  ■  TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund

· The minimum initial investment for Retail Class shares is $2,000 for Traditional IRA, Roth IRA and Coverdell accounts and $2,500 for all other account types. Subsequent investments for all account types must be at least $100.

· There is no minimum initial or subsequent investment for Retirement Class shares. Retirement Class shares are primarily offered through employer-sponsored employee benefit plans.

· There is a $100 million aggregate plan size and $1 million initial minimum plan-level investment requirement for Premier Class shares. Premier Class shares are offered through certain financial intermediaries and employer-sponsored employee benefit plans.

· The minimum initial investment is $2 million and the minimum subsequent investment is $1,000 for Institutional Class shares, unless an investor purchases shares by or through financial intermediaries that have entered into an appropriate agreement with the Fund or its affiliates.

Redeeming Shares. You can redeem (sell) your shares of the Fund at any time. If your shares are held through a third party, please contact that person for applicable redemption requirements. If your shares are held directly with the Fund, contact the Fund directly in writing or by telephone.

Exchanging Shares. You can exchange shares of the Fund for the same class of shares of any other funds offered by the TIAA-CREF Funds at any time, subject to the limitations described in the Market Timing/Excessive Trading Policy section in the statutory prospectus or any limitations imposed by a third party when shares are held through a third party. Exchanges involving shares of the Fund held less than 60 calendar days may be subject to the Redemption Fee addressed in “Fees and Expenses” above.

TAX INFORMATION

The Fund intends to make distributions to shareholders that may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions made to tax-exempt shareholders or shareholders who hold Fund shares in a tax-deferred account are generally not subject to income tax in the current year, but redemptions made from tax-deferred accounts may be subject to income tax.

PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER
FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARY COMPENSATION

If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and/or its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

TIAA-CREF Mid-Cap Growth Fund  ■  Summary Prospectus     7

BV-SFICOC-US09000076

   

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