Husson University

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
010271210
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Bangor, ME, USA
Phone
2079417000
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Graduate, Professional Schools (Separate Entities)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$94,887,660
Expenses
$98,414,091
Assets
$152,365,512
Liabilities
$35,772,829

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

Leadership & pay

47 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Lynne Coy-Ogan (President)
  • Dr Robert A Clark (Past President (Term End 6/24))

Highest reported compensation

  • Dr Robert A Clark (Past President (Term End 6/24)): $544,248 total reported compensation
  • Lynne Coy-Ogan (President): $347,152 total reported compensation
  • Phillip Taylor (Dean of Science & Humanities): $214,193 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Husson University inspires and prepares students for professional careers in current and emerging fields within the context of an education informed by the sciences and humanities.

What it reported doing in 2024

For more than 125 years, Husson University has prepared future leaders to address the challenges of tomorrow through innovative undergraduate and graduate degrees.With a commitment to delivering affordable classroom, online and experiential learning opportunities, Husson University has come to represent superior value in higher education. Our Bangor campus provides advanced knowledge in business, health, science and humanities, as well as communication. In addition, Husson University has a robust online learning program.According to a recent analysis of tuition and fees by U.S. News & World Report, Husson University is one of the most affordable private colleges in New England. Education at Husson University produces results. Husson University is regionally accredited by the New England Council of Higher Education (NECHE). Regional accreditation applies to all programs. The University is also accredited by the International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE), the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy (ACOTE), the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Program (CACREP), with approval by the Maine Department of Education and National Board for Certified Counselors for its Teacher Education and School Counseling programs respectively.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 95% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 65% for direct work, and 35% for grants.
  • 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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 89
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 36
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 94.2%; rating input score 94
  • Program expense ratio: 90.5%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.51 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -3.7%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.55; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.3%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.5% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.7% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 94.2% of revenue deployed · 90.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 28 of 30 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $89M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $544K · 47 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $5M reported
  • Consistency: 37 of 38 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 10 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 54/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 50/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.