National Whitetail Deer Education Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
341821699
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Cambridge, OH, USA
Phone
7404353335
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Museum, Museum Activities

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,640,909
Expenses
$3,444,022
Assets
$13,115,328
Liabilities
$3,780,266

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DANA LAUNDER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • BRYAN STONEY (PRESIDENT)
  • JAMIE DAVIS (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • DANA LAUNDER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $107,635 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 mission of the national whitetail deer education foundation is to reconnect youth and families with outdoor activities and recreation by helping to foster and develop a life-long appreciation for the outdoors and nature. Our commitment to this mission is best demonstrated through ownership and management of the deerassic park education center. Deerassic park is home to nature trails, ponds, a picturesque creek studies area, archery range, and many other educational areas as well as deer pens which house a live deer herd numbering approximately 25 head. These areas provide the perfect framework for teaching respect and appreciation of nature at the many field trips, camps, community events, and other outdoor education events held each year.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization operates educational areas that are open to the public on a seasonal basis free of charge. These areas include an educational welcome center with hands on displays related to Ohio native wildlife and plants as well as a display of over 70 of the largest whitetail deer ever harvested in the state of Ohio known as the Ohio whitetail hall of fame at deerassic park. In addition, the organization hosts several other family and community events designed for youth and adults alike. These events are generally free to the public and allow families and community members to get out and enjoy the outdoors at our 160 plus acre deerassic park education center. These events will normally see attendance of over 7,500 individuals to enjoy activities from fishing derbies and an overnight archery camp to our monthly wild wednesday educational series featuring topics such as ginseng hunting and building blue bird boxes.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 71% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 54
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 60
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 58.1%; rating input score 58
  • Program expense ratio: 64.5%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 5.4%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.81; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.29; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.1%; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.3% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 12.6% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.9% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 58.1% of revenue deployed · 64.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $2.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $108K · 8 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $110K reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 58/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 52/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 35/100.