Denison University
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 314379459
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024, Form 990-N 2008
- Location
- Granville, Ohio, USA
- Phone
- 740-587-0810
- Rating
- 83
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Undergraduate College (4-year)
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $299,027,973
- Expenses
- $293,382,030
- Assets
- $1,648,068,533
- Liabilities
- $244,324,520
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
50 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ADAM S WEINBERG (PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- ADAM S WEINBERG (PRESIDENT): $1,224,166 total reported compensation
- KATHLEEN R BROWNE (CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER): $1,111,972 total reported compensation
- JULIE CROSBY (MANAGING DIR.,INVESTMENTS): $980,887 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Denison’s purpose is to inspire and educate its students to become autonomous thinkers, discerning moral agents and active citizens of a democratic society.
What it reported doing in 2024
Our purpose is to inspire and educate our students to become autonomous thinkers, discerning moral agents and active citizens of a democratic society. Through an emphasis on active learning, we engage students in the liberal arts, which fosters self-determination and demonstrates the transformative power of education. We provide undergraduate programs of instruction to approximately 2,464 students. Students are offered approximately 65 majors, concentrations and programs of study. Scholarships and grants are provided based on merit and economic need. The university also provides services to students including counseling and programs in the areas of admissions, student aid, student employment, student activities, registration, and student life.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Other-operating. 77% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
- Distribution model
- Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 64% for direct work, and 36% for grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 84
- Transparency & Controls: 75
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 59
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 92.9%; rating input score 93
- Program expense ratio: 87.4%; rating input score 87
- Fundraising efficiency: $5.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
- Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
- Requires narrative reports: Fail
- Conducts field audits: Fail
- May suspend future funding: Fail
- Requires financial reports: Fail
- Conducts site visits: Fail
- Requires grant agreements: Fail
- May require repayment: Fail
- Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 50th 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: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 1.9%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.62; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.15; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.6%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 92.9% of revenue deployed · 87.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 35 of 35 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $256.3M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $1.2M · 50 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $36.3M reported
- Consistency: 44 of 44 current checks pass
- Schedules: 12 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 26 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 13 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.
- 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.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 7 of 8 not reported.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 26/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 42/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 44/100.