Hitchcock Center for the Environment Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 042487748
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2009
- Location
- Amherst, MA, USA
- Phone
- 4132566006
- Rating
- 82
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,490,756
- Expenses
- $1,391,679
- Assets
- $6,697,826
- Liabilities
- $200,245
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
15 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- RHEA BANKER (PRESIDENT)
- JAANA CUTSON (VICE PRESIDENT)
- WILLIAM SPITZER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- WILLIAM SPITZER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $112,484 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Hitchcock center for the environment, inc.'s (hce) mission is to foster a greater awareness and understanding of our environment and to develop environmentally literate citizens. (see schedule o)this is done through comprehensive environmental education programs that serve children, adults and families. Hce's primary objectives are as follows: to promote the sustainability of the planet; to cultivate a respect for all living things as well as a desire to protect the environment; to inspire wonder, curiosity and openness to the natural world; and to lead to positive change through education and example.
What it reported doing in 2024
K-12 school programs: students participate in interdisciplinary, hands-on problem solving and design challenges through field trips to our living building, science residencies at their school, water conservation, air quality, climate education and other environmental education programs. Teachers are trained in the best practices of science and environmental education through workshops, pre-service courses and institutes.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 71% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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
STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 69
- Transparency & Controls: 86
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 62
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 73.2%; rating input score 73
- Program expense ratio: 77.6%; rating input score 78
- Fundraising efficiency: $5.05 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd 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: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 6.6%; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.81; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 8.1%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 12.2% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 9.7% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 73.2% of revenue deployed · 77.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $112K · 15 people listed
- Consistency: 28 of 31 current checks pass · 3 findings to review
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 18/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 54/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule D expense reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule D revenue reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 43/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.