Clipper Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
271296285
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
New Castle, NH, USA
Phone
6034932423
Rating
61
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Fund Raising and/or Fund Distribution

Reported finances

Revenue
$52,593
Expenses
$829
Assets
$1,976,445
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LYNDA SCHMIDT (PRESIDENT)
  • JESSICA BLASKO (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • STU LEVENSON (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • LYNDA SCHMIDT (PRESIDENT)
  • JESSICA BLASKO (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • TIM DRISCOLL (TREASURER)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

To support unique learning opportunities and promote innovative teaching and professional development within the school systems of portsmouth, New Hampshire and surrounding school systems.

What it reported doing in 2025

To provide funding for multiple grants to various seacoast schools. Grants are provided to recipients to explore new teaching practices, foster innovation, enable student growth, and acheive the goals set within the school distict.

Operating model

Revenue model
Investment-supported. 80% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
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 available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 34
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 91
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 1.9%; rating input score 2
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • 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: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 98.4%; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2,384.13; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -18.3% per year; rating input score 0; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -16.2% per year; rating input score 0; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 1.9% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $829 in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 11 of 11 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2016 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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 2/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.