LNI

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
461310975
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Rapid City, SD, USA
Phone
6056854551
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Cultural, Ethnic Awareness

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$934,145
Expenses
$754,644
Assets
$650,468
Liabilities
$198,850

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • CHUCK WILSON (CHAIRMAN): $8,500 total reported compensation
  • KEITH FERGUSON (DIRECTOR): $8,150 total reported compensation
  • DANIELLE WALKING EAGLE (SECRETARY): $6,800 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To educate youth on native american culture and facilitate annual events which showcase the talents of native american and non-native american students and allow them an avenue to come together as a community with other schools.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization showcases native american and non-native american youth at a competitive level, sharing the native american culture with attendees and each other. Events occur throughout the year, including basketball, volleyball, wrestling, track, cross country, and golf athletic competitions. Concurrent with the athletic competitions, the organization also hosts archery, art show, hand games, knowledge bowl, chess, poetry slam, business plan, and lakota language bowl competitions. In the spring, lni hosts a student council conference with educational and community opportunities. These events help keep the culture and traditions alive in youth today. Youth are drawn together through competition and the love of culture and sports. They take pride in themselves, their schools, their culture, and their communities. Participants are from multiple states and tribes in elementary through high school grades. During 2024, 59 teams from 329 schools participated, with an estimated 2,750 - 3,250 participants.

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 99% 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 54
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72.6%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 88.9%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $39.82 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 80%; rating input score 80; 34th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 19.2%; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.86; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.6%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 12.3% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 12.3% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.5% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72.6% of revenue deployed · 88.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $671K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $8K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 28 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 11 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 38/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 24/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 41/100.