Pinchot University

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
912157623
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2014
Forms available
Form 990 2014
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone
2068559559
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Graduate, Professional Schools (Separate Entities)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,361,215
Expenses
$4,106,135
Assets
$1,575,816
Liabilities
$1,602,053

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JILL BAMBURG (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JILL BAMBURG (PRESIDENT): $100,141 total reported compensation
  • SANDRA POSSIN (CFO): $82,143 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To prepare students from diverse backgrounds to design, build, and evolve enterprises that contribute to the common good with the values of innovation, integrity, sustainability, social justice, community and transformational leadership. We fulfill this mission in two ways: by preparing our own students and by helping other business schools integrate sustainability into the heart of their programs. The organization's vision is to infuse environmentally and socially responsible business innovation into general business practice by transforming business education.

What it reported doing in 2014

Pinchot has continued to expand its educational purpose and programs through the continuing development and deployment of curriculum and other educational resources focused on sustainability. Sustainability refers to both environmental protection and social justice, with a particular focus on poverty alleviation and other aspects of human health and welfare. As has been the case from its inception, these new educational activities initiated by pinchot include both academic and service learning elements.in april 2013, pinchot established the center for inclusive ntrepreneurship (cie). Cie offers workshops and one-to-one opportunities through which pinchot curriculum and other resources serve society's interest in reducing poverty through self-employment and very small scale enterprise, particularly where individuals from low-income communities have no meaningful path out of poverty through employment. Cie procedures are intended to screen participants so that only low-income individuals participate in cie programs. Cie program participants are not charged for the education and training cie provides.cie's activities include the development of additional educational programs and resources to serve this poverty alleviation mission. The subject matter of the more recently developed programs and curricula, offered or used in both group and one-to-settings, include worker-owned cooperatives and small scale food processing, in each case consistent with the mission of improving the welfare of individuals in poverty. Formally and otherwise, pinchot students have become involved in cie activity as a part of their educational experience.

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 91% 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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and revenue has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 75
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 40
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 75.5%; rating input score 76
  • Program expense ratio: 80.2%; rating input score 80
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 70th 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; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 5.8%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.38; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.02; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.4%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: -10.4% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -18.7% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 75.5% of revenue deployed · 80.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 16 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $3.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $100K · 18 people listed
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2012 to 2014
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 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.

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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 7/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 51/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.