Grow Wild Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
465544351
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2022, Form 990-N 2016
Location
Bozeman, MT, USA
Phone
4062090905
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Natural Resources Conservation and Protection

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$300,418
Expenses
$266,837
Assets
$150,632
Liabilities
$3,650

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JENNIFER MOHLER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JENNIFER MOHLER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $104,805 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Grow wild's mission is to conserve native species in the upper gallatin watershed through education, habitat restoration, and collaborative land stewardship. Grow wild's mission is to conserve native species in the upper gallatin watershed through education, habitat restoration, and collaborative land stewardship. We empower landowners, residents, and visitors with knowledge, tools, and resources to protect native ecosystems, wildlife, and water resources while reducing the impacts of invasive species and recreation on the landscape.

What it reported doing in 2024

Land stewardship program: protecting natural resources is essential to sustaining both the character of our community and the health of our ecosystems. Central to this effort is cultivating an informed and engaged public. Through three core projects -- clean recreation, education & outreach, and landowner assistance -- we provide residents and visitors with tools to prevent the spread of invasive species, adopt conservation practices, and steward the land responsibly. By educating youth and adults, promoting clean recreation, and offering free site visits to landowners, we ensure that the landscapes we love remain healthy and resilient for future generations.land stewardship program: our cornerstone program integrates education, clean recreation, and landowner assistance to promote long-term ecological health.--education & outreach: in 2024, we expanded our education program, traveling 3,945 miles with our interactive trailer and hosting 68 classes and events. We reached 2,747 youth and 2,066 adults -- a 115% increase in children and 57% increase in adults over 2023. Since inception, we have educated more than 17,000 children and 7,400 adults. Partnerships with local schools included weed pulls and native plantings, empowering students as the next generation of conservation leaders.--clean recreation: to prevent the spread of terrestrial and aquatic invasive species, we promoted playcleango and clean.drain.dry. Campaigns through billboards, signage, social media, and outreach events. By 2024, we had installed 8 trailhead signs, distributed 642 kids' kits, provided nearly 30,000 promotional items, and reached over 30 million people through billboards, media, and signage since 2016. In 2024 alone, clean.drain.dry. Outreach included 9.5m canyon sign views, 1.2m print ad impressions, and 68 in-person events.--landowner assistance: active land stewardship by landowners is critical for habitat and watershed protection. In 2024, grow wild conducted 91 property inspections, a 72% increase from 2023, representing more than 1,000 acres. Since 2008, we have inspected 1,093 properties, impacting 12,932 acres. A post-visit survey showed 100% of landowners found our assistance helpful in improving their understanding and management of noxious weeds. We also launched the alpenscapes partnership, promoting water-wise, firewise, and wildlife-friendly landscaping, which boosted inspection demand and expanded community awareness.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 69% 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 81
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 42
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.2%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 86.8%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $57.77 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.2%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.56; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 39.3%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 26.5% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 23.5% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.2% of revenue deployed · 86.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $232K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $105K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2023 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 27/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 6/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.