Central Washington University Alumni Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
911980504
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Ellensburg, WA, USA
Phone
5099632752
Rating
60
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$259,191
Expenses
$68,832
Assets
$1,111,864
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • EMILY ADAMS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • JADA RUPLEY (PRESIDENT)
  • CRAIG SANDERSON (PRESIDENT ELECT)
  • ANDREW MORK (PAST PRESIDENT (THRU 10/2024))

Highest reported compensation

  • EMILY ADAMS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $199,840 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 mission of the association is to support the cwu community through cultivation, engagement and development of its alumni and friends.

What it reported doing in 2024

Vision statement: to build a passionate wildcat nation.statement of philosophy: we believe that cwu should be a cooperative enterprise, a community of students, faculty, staff, and alumni, whom collectively and individually, all are responsible for developing, supporting, and sustaining the objectives of cwu. We believe that our alumni comprise an integral and inseparable part of cwu and that all alumni have a continuing obligation to serve and support their almamater.we believe that our alumni can serve cwu by joining together in an organized association which can promote and focus support and service and that the concepts for developing the association's organizational policies should be determined by the alumni themselves.we believe that it should be the function of association to work with cwu to develop ways and means of alumni engagement, involvement and communication with their alma mater and to see that alumni are recognized as a respected and integral part of cwu.the work we do is guided by three strategic principles: connect = outreachengage = build participationlead = develop leaders and philanthropic partnerthe alumni association has made tremendous progress as we have sought to expand outreach and participation. The association continues to look for creative program opportunities including on campus, local, state, and awareness of the programs and support offered by the association. The development of the alumni plaza has not only created a place for alumni to gather on campus but is also doubling as the commencement stage where we are able to welcome our most recent alumni. We continue to partner with our wildcat network officers to increase our capacity for face-to-face visits and to strengthen our wildcat brand across the state. While much of our focus continues to be on connecting our current students with our alumni, we are also excited to promote and market opportunities for alumni to give back to the institution in support of scholarships.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 77% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 85% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 40
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 83
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 25.8%; rating input score 26
  • Program expense ratio: 56.5%; rating input score 57
  • Fundraising efficiency: $20.46 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 73.4%; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 16.15; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 68.6%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.2% per year; rating input score 0; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -2.2% per year; rating input score 0; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 25.8% of revenue deployed · 56.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $39K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $200K · 20 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 23 of 23 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 26/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 57/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 58/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.