Bitterroot Ecological Awareness Resource
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 810520576
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2020
- Forms available
- Form 990 2020, Form 990-EZ 2019
- Location
- Hamilton, MT, USA
- Phone
- 4063635410
- Rating
- 79
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $359,314
- Expenses
- $218,653
- Assets
- $229,035
- Liabilities
- $42,381
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- DIANE OLSEN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- DIANE OLSEN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $51,315 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To inspire youth to connect to their own potential, their community, and the landscape through experiential and outdoor adventure programs.
What it reported doing in 2020
In all of its programs, b.e.a.r. Serviced more than 700 community members last year, more than ever before in its history. B.e.a.r. Has three main programs, listed below: venture out mentoring program: through mentoring activities that incorporate the benefits of being outdoors, the venture out program replicates an evidence-based program to help youth who need more support due to challneging circumstances in their lives including poverty, abuse, and mental health issues. On average, at least 95% of youth increase their pro-social behaviors and become more connected to the outdoors. Fewer venture out youth are involved in the juvenile justice system compared to county-wide data despite having multiple risk factors in their lives, and at least 95% of youth and families surveyed report being very satisfied with the programming. The resulting impact is that youth are happier, more successful and likely to contribute positively to their communities and the landscape. Typically, approximately 80 youth will be served by this program.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 91% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- 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 a large share of total spending goes to programs. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 67
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 84
- Sustainability: 56
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 55%; rating input score 55
- Program expense ratio: 90.3%; rating input score 90
- Fundraising efficiency: $28.68 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- 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: 39.1%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.05; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 23.5%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 55% of revenue deployed · 90.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $198K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $51K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 4 filing years from 2010 to 2020
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 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.
Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 35/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 20/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 27/100.
- High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.