Alumni Association of the University of Michigan

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
237206591
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024, Form 990-N 2019
Location
Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Phone
8008474764
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alumni Associations

Reported finances

Revenue
$18,574,376
Expenses
$19,590,500
Assets
$188,531,308
Liabilities
$13,010,659

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

29 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Ayanna McConnell (President and CEO)
  • Steve Grafton (Former President and CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Ayanna McConnell (President and CEO): $503,354 total reported compensation
  • Angila Chapman (Sr VP and CFO): $342,748 total reported compensation
  • Dave Schueler (Sr VP - Alumni Engagement): $328,308 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Association is an independent worldwide organization that nurtures lifelong relationships with and among current and future Michigan alumni. As a committed partner of the University the Association offers programs of relevance and service to alumni and creates support for the University. Underlying all that we do is the belief in the value of education to the well-being of society a commitment to integrity diversity and service.

What it reported doing in 2024

Membership benefits and services including coordination and sponsorship of programming to enrich the lives of University of Michigan alumni and students. This also includes networking and job assistance online networking reunions and special events.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 52
  • Transparency & Controls: 81
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 45
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 65.8%; rating input score 66
  • Program expense ratio: 46.4%; rating input score 46
  • Fundraising efficiency: $0.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.5%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 9.62; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.5%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.2% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 65.8% of revenue deployed · 46.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $9.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $503K · 29 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 47 of 48 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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: Program expense ratio scored 46/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 2/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 16/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.