Northern California Vipassana Center

Overview

Mission

Teach vipassana meditation as taught by sn goenka.

What it reported doing in 2025

Northern California vipassana centers primary mission is to conduct vipassana meditation courses. The center conducts 10 day courses several times a month serving approximately 1000 students per year.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
680426714
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Cobb, CA, USA
Phone
7079289981
Rating
57
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Student Services, Organizations of Students
Affiliation
Buddhism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$897,531
Expenses
$639,171
Assets
$3,553,559
Liabilities
$678,194

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 55
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 6
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 43.5%; rating input score 44
  • Program expense ratio: 60%; rating input score 60
  • Fundraising efficiency: $466.1 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 14
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 28.8%; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.56; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.2% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.1% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 43.5% of revenue deployed · 60% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 11 board members independent · 1 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $384K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 26 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 14 annual filings from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 44/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 6 not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

People named in this filing

  • LUCY KOSTRZEWA (PRESIDENT)
  • DORY HERNANDEZ (SECRETARY)
  • JAY SOLOMON (TREASURER)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025.