Northland College

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
390806428
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Ashland, WI, US
Phone
7156821699
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Undergraduate College (4-year)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$24,923,303
Expenses
$27,112,638
Assets
$35,670,221
Liabilities
$4,132,372

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

Leadership & pay

29 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHAD DAYTON (PRESIDENT (THRU FEB. 25'))
  • BARBARA LUNDBERG (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHAD DAYTON (PRESIDENT (THRU FEB. 25')): $212,783 total reported compensation
  • PETER ANNIN (DIRECTOR OF BURKE CENTER): $158,191 total reported compensation
  • DAWN RIVARD (CHIEF OF STAFF): $137,970 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Northland College was an accredited, private, nonprofit liberal arts college known for its deep commitment to the environment and sustainability.

What it reported doing in 2024

Instruction: northland's faculty-designed curriculum integrates the college's environmental mission across all fields of study and is a career-focused curriculum. Ninety-two percent of northland graduates are employed or in graduate school, having developed the skills and experience to prepare for advanced study and meaningful lives. The college has launched scientists, educators, business owners, and dedicated professionals in almost every field imaginable and has provided graduates with the tools, confidence, and vision to be competitive in a greener world economy.students at northland can take courses in more than 40 academic fields of study. Impressive for a tiny but mighty school on the shores of the big lake gitchi gami (ojibwe for "great sea"). Northland's 550+ students can explore climate change studies, humanity and nature studies, native american studies, six pre-professional programs, sociology and social justice, water science, and more. First-year students also have the opportunity to focus more deeply on learning outside the classroom through northland's signature superior connections and growing connections programs.the association for the advancement of sustainability in higher education has recognized northland for its sustainability curriculum. The aashe sustainable campus index recognizes top-performing colleges and universities in 17 sustainability impact areas; curriculum is one of them and includes courses, programs, learning outcomes in sustainability, living laboratory initiatives, immersive experiences, sustainability literacy, and faculty development. Every academic department at northland offers sustainability courses, and there are seven majors and minors specific to sustainability, such as sustainable community development, one of the only of its kind in the nation. This program ceased operations in may of 2025.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 65% for direct work, and 35% for grants.
  • 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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 83
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.2%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 80.7%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: $44.52 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 74; 74th 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: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • 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: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • 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: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -8.8%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.32; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.12; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.9%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.6% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.6% per year; rating input score 100; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -3.4% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 88.2% of revenue deployed · 80.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 17 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 6 filed program accomplishments · $21.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $213K · 29 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $4.1M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 46/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.