Hilltown Commons Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
453805249
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Rensselaerville, NY, USA
Phone
5187975100
Rating
54
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Reported finances

Revenue
$907,681
Expenses
$552,060
Assets
$4,217,909
Liabilities
$45,495

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • DOUGLAS PARVIS (VICE-CHAIR, EX. DIR.): $8,504 total reported compensation
  • VIRGINIA THOMSON (CHAIR): $8,473 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To engage in educational purposes by offering tuition-based retreats, workshops, public events, and a creative residency that supplies housing and studios for artists. Programs on a 100-acre rensselaerville, ny campus weave humanities, arts, systems thinking, and community leadership to build practical skills, idea exchange, and a deep sense of place.

What it reported doing in 2024

Pond hill writing workshop - a 5 day retreat was developed during 2024 to invite 12 emerging writers focused on craft revision and place-based storytelling. Scheduled faculty to include two published authors with sessions blended seminar instruction; guided writing time and peer critique. The initial retreat occurred in early 2025 which culminated in a public reading for local residents and is planned to be a routinely scheduled program.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 82% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
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

MIXED - 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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 7
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 83
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 6.2%; rating input score 6
  • Program expense ratio: 11.6%; rating input score 12
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 81.8%; rating input score 82; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 39.2%; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.64; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.1%; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -9.2% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -17.3% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -6% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 6.2% of revenue deployed · 11.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $64K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $9K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and related organizations
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 6/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 12/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 57/100.