Elderberry Wisdom Farm
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 841861088
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2022–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2021, Form 990-N 2020
- Location
- Salem, OR, USA
- Phone
- 9718032348
- Rating
- 66
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Rural Economic Development
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $899,839
- Expenses
- $375,212
- Assets
- $708,775
- Liabilities
- $4,291
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- Rose High Bear (Founder and Project Director): $84,000 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Elderberry Wisdom Farm provides holistic workforce opportunities for Native Americans pursuing meaningful conservation career pathways, including microenterprise business development. We also provide opportunities for Native Americans, economically challenged individuals and public audiences to increase awareness and understanding of traditional ecological knowledge along with the rich cultural heritage of America's First Peoples. Committed to race reconciliation for all, we feel this strengthens appreciation and respect for the wisdom and knowledge of Native American elders, cultural leaders and indigenous scientists.
What it reported doing in 2024
The TEK Workforce Development Project provides conservation career pathway opportunities for Native American and other economically challenged individuals who are pursuing habitat restoration, native plant nursery development, urban agroforestry, Indigenous agroforestry and organic farming. Internships provide cohorts with classroom education and experiential service-learning activities so they can integrate Traditional Ecological Knowledge principles and practices with partners' conservation practices. At the same time we work to restore, enhance and protect sensitive Native habitat in Mid-Willamette watersheds using Native American climate adaptation and mitigation practices. This initiative has expanded to include microenterprise development which has helped EWF strengthen its commitment to social, economic and environmental justice for diverse communities of economically challenged individuals in our region. Multiple collaborative partnerships with diverse environmental and tribal NPOs, agencies and institutions have helped EWF and partners to achieve its vision of race reconciliation at a higher level.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 70% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- 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 program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 53
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 45
- Sustainability: 73
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 32.5%; rating input score 32
- Program expense ratio: 77.3%; rating input score 77
- Fundraising efficiency: $126.86 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 89; 89th 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: 50%; rating input score 50; 11th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 58.3%; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.89; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 22.4%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 50.7% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 86.5% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 32.5% of revenue deployed · 77.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 3 of 6 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $290K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $84K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 32/100.
- Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 50/100.
- Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 12/100.