Fielding Graduate University

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
952882724
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Santa Barbara, CA, USA
Phone
8058984010
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$28,003,002
Expenses
$27,159,691
Assets
$38,726,654
Liabilities
$7,052,164

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

Leadership & pay

30 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KATRINA ROGERS (PRESIDENT)
  • JOHN L BENNETT (TRUSTEE/PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • KATRINA ROGERS (PRESIDENT): $469,860 total reported compensation
  • WENDI WILLIAMS (PROVOST (OUTGOING)): $266,476 total reported compensation
  • ELENA I NICKLASSON (VP OF UNIVERSITY RELATIONS): $226,627 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

We provide exemplary interdisciplinary programs for a community of scholar-practitioners within a distributed learning model grounded in student-driven inquiry and leading to enhanced knowledge.

What it reported doing in 2024

Fielding graduate university is an accredited provider of blended graduate education, combining face-to-face and online learning. Fielding offers doctoral, master's, and advanced certificate programs in the fields of educational leadership, human and organizational development, and clinical and media psychology to mid-career adults. Approximately 1,000 students are served throughout the world with the majority residing in the united states and north america.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 84% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 93% 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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 69
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 46
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 64.2%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 64.4%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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: Limited
    • Conducts field audits: Limited
    • May suspend future funding: Limited
    • Requires financial reports: Limited
    • Conducts site visits: Limited
    • Requires grant agreements: Limited
    • May require repayment: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 79.2%; rating input score 79; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 82.4%; rating input score 82; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 3%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.43; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.8%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.2% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.8% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 64.2% of revenue deployed · 64.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $17.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $470K · 30 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $655K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 38 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 8 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: 14 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 49/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.