Hartley Nature Center

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363507636
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Duluth, MN, USA
Phone
2187246735
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,627,328
Expenses
$1,013,002
Assets
$2,758,102
Liabilities
$191,046

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

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • AMY DEMMER (EXECUTIVE DI): $24,872 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Hartley nature center is dedicated to inspiring life-long connections with nature through education, play, and exploration.

What it reported doing in 2024

Programs for the general public: - offered 122 seasonal environmental camps (3-5 days in length). Natural history and outdoor skills were the primary topics with participants ages 3-12. - provided 1,683 camp experiences for kids. - gave away 3,738.70 in camp scholarship assistance to families whose children qualified for federal assistance programs. - provided 36 walk-in nature nook programs for parents and their pre-schoolers over the course of the year. Attendance was 223 participants. - provided volunteer opportunities including: education, stewardship and event assistants. Volunteer list consists of over 164 individuals. - provided 609 service hours in the way of volunteer opportunities involved in the stewardship and park maintenance of hartley park, including invasive removal, trail maintenance, vernal pool mapping, and garden projects. - provided 258 equipment rentals. School programs (pre-k thru grade 12):- provided field trips and site visits to 2,521 students. - provided 1,953.75 toward student field trip experiences at half reduced or free rates via our scholarships and 1,449.96 towards bus scholarships. - served groups from several area communities.- provided 77 field trip opportunities and 1 school site visit. - provided 42,570 contact hours to 111 children via our hartley nature preschool during the course of the normal school year.

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.

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: 52
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 41.1%; rating input score 41
  • Program expense ratio: 64.8%; rating input score 65
  • Fundraising efficiency: $31.99 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 70; 70th 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 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 37.8%; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.72; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.5%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 41.1% of revenue deployed · 64.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $657K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $25K · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 41/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.