Bard College Berlin a Liberal Arts University Ggmbh

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
320105791
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Annandaleonhudson, NY, USA
Phone
2125346620
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Undergraduate College (4-year)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$15,573,927
Expenses
$17,322,566
Assets
$50,861,317
Liabilities
$57,209,493

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

Leadership & pay

39 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LEON BOTSTEIN (PRESIDENT/TRUSTEE)

Highest reported compensation

  • LEON BOTSTEIN (PRESIDENT/TRUSTEE): $689,293 total reported compensation
  • TAUN TOAY (MANAGING DIRECTOR-BERLIN): $454,027 total reported compensation
  • FLORIAN BECKER (MANAGING DIRECTOR): $164,872 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Bard college berlin (bcb) was formed to be a model for change in european education by providing a liberal arts alternative. It is also inspired by the ideal of providing an in-depth international education experience for students from all over the world.

What it reported doing in 2024

Bcb's teaching model is the anglo-american liberal arts experience, with close interaction between students and faculty. It provides an interdisciplinary curriculum based upon the european tradition and encourages personal thought and expression through an emphasis on writing. The dean oversees bcb's academic functions in collaboration with an international faculty. The managing directors are responsible for operations, personnel, and finances. Close collaboration exists between the german campus and bard college (ny), especially across academic, financial oversight, and board responsibility. Students may earn a fully accredited european degree and a dual degree through bard's us accredited degree.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 71% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 64% for direct work, and 36% for grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 96%; rating input score 96
  • Program expense ratio: 86.3%; rating input score 86
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Limited
    • Conducts field audits: Limited
    • May suspend future funding: Limited
    • Requires financial reports: Limited
    • Conducts site visits: Limited
    • Requires grant agreements: Limited
    • May require repayment: 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: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 84%; rating input score 84; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -11.2%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.94; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.12; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.6%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.2% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 23.2% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 96% of revenue deployed · 86.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 25 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $14.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $689K · 39 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $516K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 4/100.