Iowa State University Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 421143702
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Ames, Iowa, USA
- Phone
- 515.294.4607
- Rating
- 81
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Single Organization Support
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $196,181,104
- Expenses
- $204,948,678
- Assets
- $2,138,119,815
- Liabilities
- $60,470,406
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
27 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- LARISSA HOLTMYER JONES (PRESIDENT AND CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- LARISSA HOLTMYER JONES (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $619,730 total reported compensation
- JEREMY GALVIN (VP & CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER): $383,673 total reported compensation
- EMILY HAGER (VP & CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $283,661 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Advancing Iowa State University. One gift at a time.
What it reported doing in 2024
Student support: Iowa state undergraduate and graduate students received over $57.1 million in scholarships, fellowships, loans, and awards from private gift support. Students received both merit and need based scholarships across all programs and units of the university. Private gift support is critical to ensuring that all willing students are able to explore their education opportunities, experience college life, and efficiently manage tuition costs and debt loads. In the fiscal year, more than 8,400 students received scholarships funded by private gift support.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as 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. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 80
- Transparency & Controls: 74
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 52
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 91.2%; rating input score 91
- Program expense ratio: 77.7%; rating input score 78
- Fundraising efficiency: $7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th 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: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -4.5%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 10.43; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 1.5%; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
- Where the money goes: 91.2% of revenue deployed · 77.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $159.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $620K · 27 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $4.7M reported
- Consistency: 37 of 37 current checks pass
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 12 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 4 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 14/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.