Islandwood

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
311654076
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Bainbridge Island, WA, USA
Phone
2068554300
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$13,263,034
Expenses
$12,208,681
Assets
$50,781,998
Liabilities
$2,382,182

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

Leadership & pay

28 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DAVID GOLDBERG (VICE PRESIDENT AT LARGE)
  • MARGUERITE KONDRACKE (VICE PRESIDENT AT LARGE)
  • MEGAN KARCH (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • MEGAN KARCH (CEO): $267,171 total reported compensation
  • JENNIFER KIM (VP OF PHILANTHROPY): $170,308 total reported compensation
  • DARREN KERBS (DIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY): $130,022 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The primary goal is to help children & adults develop a commitment to lifelong learning & environmental and community stewardship through hands-on learning experiences combining science, technology, & the arts at islandwood's 255-acre outdoor learning center and in schools.

What it reported doing in 2024

Islandwood delivers educational experiences that help children and adults alike understand their environment and discover the impact they can have on the world and their communities. Our place-based, experiential learning programs for puget sound area schools are offered on our bainbridge island, Washington campus, at the brightwater wastewater treatment plant in woodinville, Washington, and in seattle schools and communities. Islandwood extends its impact on elementary students through our graduate program in education, the development of elementary school curriculum, teacher training programs, and statewide advocacy initiatives.continued on schedule o.islandwood's graduate program is a 10-month immersive residency in justice-oriented environmental education experiential, student centered learning and culturally responsive teaching and curriculum development. In fiscal year 2024-2025, 14 students earned their certificate from the graduate program. Islandwood is helping teachers connect science learning to students' lives and communities through our teacher professional development series. During the 2024- 2025 fiscal year, over 350 teachers participated in the series, impacting over 20,000 students. Islandwood's community education programs, including summer camps for children and open trail days, impacted an additional 6,500+ people in the 2024-2025 fiscal 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 98% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - 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 assets have declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 66
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.5%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 76.5%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.33 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99.8%; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: 7.9%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.16; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.2%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1.3% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.9% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -0.7% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 74.5% of revenue deployed · 76.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $267K · 28 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $967K reported
  • Consistency: 41 of 41 current checks pass
  • 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
  • Related organizations: 3 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 13/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.