Countryside Conservancy
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 232787790
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- La Plume, PA, USA
- Phone
- 570.945.6995
- Rating
- 72
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Alliance/Advocacy Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,881,281
- Expenses
- $395,539
- Assets
- $4,983,221
- Liabilities
- $77,759
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
22 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JOSEPH WRIGHT (PRESIDENT)
People named in this filing
- PAT ACKER (DIRECTOR)
- BONNIE ALCO (DIRECTOR)
- DORRANCE BELIN (DIRECTOR - E)
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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Countryside Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit land trust committed to protecting and connecting greenspace in and near the Tunkhannock Creek watershed for the public benefit, now and for future generations. Amber lives in East Benton with her husband, two teenagers and dog. She holds an MA in Organizational Management from Misericordia University and a BA in Business Administration from Keystone College. She volunteers in the community and is the President of the Lackawanna Trail Friends of Music Booster Club. She and her family enjoy traveling and hiking, and spend a lot of time on the Trolley Trail. Board of Directors Countryside Conservancy’s Board of Directors is a hard-working, all-volunteer body that carries much of the organization’s workload. Our serving Board members are:.
What it reported doing in 2024
To promote the conservation of land and natural resources in northeastern Pennsylvania.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- 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.
- 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: 41
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 94
- Sustainability: 90
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 17.5%; rating input score 18
- Program expense ratio: 68.2%; rating input score 68
- Fundraising efficiency: $44.3 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 76; 76th 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: 6 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 86
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 79%; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 12.6; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 6.8% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 12.2% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 17.5% of revenue deployed · 68.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 6 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $270K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 22 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- 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 18/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.