Polygrarian Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
811021982
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2023, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Reno, NV, USA
Phone
7758151113
Rating
60
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Reported finances

Revenue
$323,794
Expenses
$284,937
Assets
$99,707
Liabilities
$590

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

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • LYNDSEY LANGSDALE (Executive Dir.): $61,866 total reported compensation
  • JOLENE COOK (Director): $33,426 total reported compensation
  • MELISSA GILBERT (Director): $19,421 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Cultivate community food systems

What it reported doing in 2024

Food equity: we grow thousands of pounds of food each year and donate 1/3 - 1/2 of what we grow. Donated over 6,000 lbs of produce to food pantry distribution oulets and over 600 seedlings to community gardens. Offer seasonal workshops and community gardening courses.

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 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 a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 0
  • Sustainability: 41
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 64.4%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 73.2%; rating input score 73
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.76 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 12%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.35; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 40.3%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 64.4% of revenue deployed · 73.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 4 board members independent · 0 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $209K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $62K · 4 people listed
  • Consistency: 21 of 21 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 7 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 39/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 6/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 49/100.