Cedar Circle Farm and Education Center Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
842709302
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
East Thetford, VT, USA
Phone
8027854737
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Agricultural Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,238,685
Expenses
$2,571,635
Assets
$5,860,414
Liabilities
$2,586,265

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ANTHONY J BARSAMIAN (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERIC TADLOCK (EXECUTIVE DI): $101,651 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Cedar circle farm and education center is dedicated to agricultural scientific research in the public interest and providing agricultural education and training to children, parents, educators, farmers, consumers, students and other members of the public to promote organic, regenerative farming and the transition to a localized food economy, including by producing healthy, organic food for the local economy in a way that enhances resources for future generations. Cedar circle farm and education center (the "farm") is located in east thetford, Vermont, and is a working farm and learning center. The farm began operating as a 501(c)(3) charity on october 1, 2020. Prior to that date, the farm had been managed by cedar circle farm, llc, a Vermont limited liability company. The farm property features several greenhouses, a farm stand, and its farm kitchen and hello cafe, where visitors can purchase low-cost organic fruit, vegetables, prepared food and baked goods sourced from or made at the

What it reported doing in 2025

The vegetable growing program engages the public through our community supported agriculture programs, which provide opportunities to learn about the seasonality of produce and benefits of local and fresh food and plants for their own gardens. In 2025, cedar circle had 426 families participating in at least one of our four csa programs. Cedar circle maintains a relationship with our community through weekly email newsletters that provide information about preserving food, recipes to utilize local ingredients, and issues that consumers should be aware of when they make decisions about personal and environmental health when they spend their food dollars. The farm also works with several other Vermont nonprofits that deliver unused fresh food to many local food pantries or make produce available through subsidized programs. Our kitchen provided over 1,000 meals to the dartmouth cancer center, at a subsidized cost, along with hundreds of pounds of fresh produce to their clients. Along with our service to the cancer center, we provided 4,000 lbs of fresh produce to willing hands, inc. For their hunger prevention programs. Our hunger relief and nutrition assistance program also includes technical support, free land use, and support of labor at willing hands garden on our farm. The expense of these programs, which share resources, is approximately 35% of our total expenses.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 67% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 56
  • Sustainability: 62
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.5%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 98.2%; rating input score 98
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: 60%; rating input score 60; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 20.6%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.28; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.44; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 21.6% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 24.8% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 49.9% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.5% of revenue deployed · 98.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 5 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $102K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

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

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 18/100.