The Center for Conservation Biology

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
262188653
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Williamsburg, VA, USA
Phone
7572212247
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Natural Resources Conservation and Protection

Reported finances

Revenue
$9,220
Expenses
$5,322
Assets
$138,314
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BRYAN D WATTS (PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • DANA S BRADSHAW (SECRETARY)
  • MITCHELL A BYRD (VICE PRESIDE)
  • BARTON J PAXTON (DIRECTOR)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Mission statement: our mission is to provide the global community with the information needed to drive thoughtful, science-based conservation, to educate and train the next generation of conservation scientists, and to make lasting contributions to the natural world through critical thinking, innovation, and ground-breaking research on birds. Additional information about cc: the center for conservation biology inc (ccb inc) is a supporting organization for the academic institution known as the center for conservation biology at the college of william and mary. Ccb inc builds needed funds to support institutional needs, student research, and current research program needs at ccb. All funds collected by ccb inc are used to directly support research, conservation, and education programs primarily managed through the academic organization.

What it reported doing in 2025

Research programs: ccb research projects support the broader conservation community on a daily basis. Research findings and products are used to develop wildlife policy, to implement management strategies, to protect imperiled species and to manage at-risk populations. Research and management activities during 2025 have included deploying transmitters on bald eagles around military installations, have surveyed nesting eagles across four states, have surveyed more than 1,000 pairs of osprey within the chesapeake bay to better understand reproductive deficits related to atlantic menhaden, have initiated a tracking study of willets throughout their annual cycle, have managed the federally endangered red- cockaded woodpecker population in Virginia, have managed the state endangered peregrine falcon population, have worked with winter marsh sparrows in Georgia and have worked with many passerine species. Since the fall of 1992, ccb has completed 1,000+ projects throughout the western hemisphere focused on making the world a better place for birds and people.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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 total spending goes to programs. 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: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 64
  • Sustainability: 79
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 51.6%; rating input score 52
  • Program expense ratio: 89.4%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $236.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings

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: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 14
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 42.3%; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 25.99; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -14.5% per year; rating input score 0; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -14.8% per year; rating input score 0; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.3% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 51.6% of revenue deployed · 89.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 1 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $5K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 13 of 13 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 52/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.