The Four Corners Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
850457996
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025, Form 990-N 2015
Location
Santa Fe, NM, USA
Phone
5033024913
Rating
64
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and/or Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$43,598
Expenses
$60,357
Assets
$8,909
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

People named in this filing

  • MELISSA SAVAGE (DIRECTOR)
  • HEATHER FRAZAR (TREASURER)
  • GIDEON PADWA (SECRETARY)

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

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

Overview

Mission

The four corners institute was established to create a bridge between ecological knowledge and the public understanding with regard to environmental issues. The programs aim to inform the public and to influence policy decisions about natural resources in a positive way.

What it reported doing in 2025

Create a bridge between ecological knowledge and the public understanding with regard to environmental issues. The programs aim to inform the public and to influence policy decisions about natural resources in a positive way.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 100% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. 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: 53
  • Transparency & Controls: 82
  • Sustainability: 26
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 59%; rating input score 59
  • Program expense ratio: 42.6%; rating input score 43

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -38.4%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.15; rating input score 15; 15th 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 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.5% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.1% per year; rating input score 0; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 59% of revenue deployed · 42.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 1 filed program accomplishment · $26K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 7 of 8 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 2 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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 59/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 43/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Part III transfer expenses within program total did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 15/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.