Keck Graduate Institute

Legal name: Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
954625327
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Claremont, CA, US
Phone
(909) 819-4544
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Graduate, Professional Schools (Separate Entities)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$37,038,171
Expenses
$39,154,622
Assets
$139,059,043
Liabilities
$52,792,747

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

Leadership & pay

38 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Sheldon Schuster (President (Thru 06/24))
  • Megan Prosser (Vice President, Academic Affairs)
  • Mohamed Abousalem (President (As of 07/24))
  • Cheryl Merritt (Asst. Vice President of HR)
  • Mia Alonzo (Assistant Vice President/Controller)

Highest reported compensation

  • Sheldon Schuster (President (Thru 06/24)): $615,994 total reported compensation
  • Megan Prosser (Vice President, Academic Affairs): $367,602 total reported compensation
  • Kelleen S Esperias (VP of Finance & Admin (Thru 09/24)): $334,692 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) is a private, nonprofit graduate institution in Claremont, California, focused on applied life sciences and healthcare. It offers master's and doctoral programs through its three schools: the Henry E. Riggs School of Applied Life Sciences, the School of Health Sciences, and the School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. KGI integrates science, business, and policy to prepare students for careers in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare administration, and genetic counseling. The institute emphasizes industry partnerships, team-based projects, and experiential learning to drive innovation in patient care and community health.

What it reported doing in 2024

The institution's primary purpose is to offer innovative postgraduate degrees and certificates that integrate life and health sciences, business, pharmacy, and genetics, with a focus on industry projects, hands-on industry experiences, and team collaboration. Through its three schools, the Henry E. Riggs School of Applied Life Sciences (Riggs School), the School of Pharmacy (SOP), and the School of Health Sciences (SHS), KGI employs an entrepreneurial approach and industry connections that provide pathways for students to become leaders in bioscience and healthcare. Degrees include: Master of Business and Science (MBS); Master of Engineering (MEng) in Biopharmaceutical Processing; Master of Science (MS) in Applied Life Sciences; Master of Science in Medical Device Engineering (MSMDE); PhD in Applied Life Sciences; Postbaccalaureate Premedical Certificate (PPC); Postbaccalaureate Pre-PA Certificate; Certificate in Bioscience Management (CBM); Masters in Community Health Administration (MCHA), Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD); Master of Science in Human Genetics and Genetic Counseling (MSGC); Master of Science in Human Genetics and Genomic Data Analytics (MSGDA), Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Occupational Therapy Doctorate, and Master of Science in Community Medicine.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 86% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 84% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 97
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.5%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 64.9%; rating input score 65
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.47 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 95%; rating input score 95; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.7%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.55; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.38; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11.2%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.3% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 9 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 74.5% of revenue deployed · 64.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 20 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $25.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $616K · 38 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2.7M reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 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: 16 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.