Cotter Schools

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
411653997
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Winona, MN, USA
Phone
5074535014
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$96,864,719
Expenses
$32,318,486
Assets
$180,571,875
Liabilities
$1,722,229

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARY EILEEN FITCH (PRESIDENT)
  • MICHAEL SWENSON (VICE PRESIDENT-ADVANCEMENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • MARY EILEEN FITCH (PRESIDENT): $190,043 total reported compensation
  • MICHAEL SWENSON (VICE PRESIDENT-ADVANCEMENT): $177,043 total reported compensation
  • JEFF APSE (DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND HUMAN RESOURCES): $123,880 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To provide a high quality, well-rounded, faith-filled education for grades prek-12 including local domestic and international boarding students.

What it reported doing in 2024

Cotter provides infants 6 age 6 weeeks and older and students (grades prek-12) with many unique opportunities that enhance their educational experience and prepare them for life. Cotter teaches young adults how to become responsible, successful, prayerful, and well-rounded adults through rigorous academic coursework, service-learning trips, daily interaction with students from various countries, religious education, advance placement courses, as well as numerous co-curricular activities. 1,078 students enrolled.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 85% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 94% 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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 46
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 90
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 33%; rating input score 33
  • Program expense ratio: 83.8%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th 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; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 66.6%; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.59; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.6%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15.2% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 21.5% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.3% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 33% of revenue deployed · 83.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $27.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $190K · 16 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 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: 4 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 33/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.