Your scenario is an example of mismanagement; you were already in college, so those funds should have been moved to less-risky investments (bonds, money-market, or even a savings account).

For retirement, Fidelity and Vanguard offer "Target-date retirement" funds, which automatically rebalance to reduce risk as you age. This is a misnomer, though, as you could easily select one of those funds for college savings or whatnot.