New England Association of Schools and Colleges Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 046112618
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Lowell, MA, USA
- Phone
- 7814257700
- Rating
- 59
- Verdict
- MIXED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $8,550,243
- Expenses
- $9,264,277
- Assets
- $19,313,273
- Liabilities
- $8,346,701
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
25 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Cameron C Staples (President/CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- Cameron C Staples (President/CEO): $530,136 total reported compensation
- George Edwards (Chief Accreditation Officer): $294,973 total reported compensation
- Evan Morse (Chief Operations Officer): $261,157 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 is to advance the cause of education in the colleges and schools of new england and of other geographical areas designated from time to time by the board of trustees. In addition, the association is to act as a regional accrediting organization dedicated to the establishment of cooperative relations among the colleges and schools of new england and of other geographical areas designated from time to time by the board of trustees. The association strives to develop, maintain, and improve sound educational standards, and to promote the interests in common to both colleges and schools.
What it reported doing in 2024
The association provides accreditations and evaluations of member and candidate schools. The association accredited and/or evaluated over 1,800 schools domestically and internationally. The accreditations and evaluations were performed by approximately 1,500 volunteers, providing an estimated 46,000 hours of service to the organization.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 97% 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
MIXED - Most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 50
- Transparency & Controls: 57
- Accountability: 96
- Sustainability: 30
- Growth: 20
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 57.1%; rating input score 57
- Program expense ratio: 53.9%; rating input score 54
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 25th 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: -8.4%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.08; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.43; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 22.6%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -4.6% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -0.6% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 2.8% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 57.1% of revenue deployed · 53.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 17 of 18 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $5M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $530K · 25 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $366K reported
- Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes foreign activity and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 8 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.
- 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 57/100.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 54/100.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.