The Highfields Institute Ltd
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 030365756
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2010
- Forms available
- Form 990 2010
- Location
- Hardwick, VT, USA
- Phone
- 8024725138
- Rating confidence
- Limited
- Sector
- Natural Resources Conservation and Protection
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $349,089
- Expenses
- $270,454
- Assets
- $72,332
- Liabilities
- $750
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2010. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2010. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
- Providing technical education resources, on composting, to the farming community. Promoting and advancing soil security in Vermont.
What it reported doing in 2010
Promote on-farm composting and soil quality by consulting and offering education via lectures and workshops as well as demonstrations and the sale of compost materials.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- 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
- The available evidence is not sufficient to produce an overall rating for this filing. This is not a warning sign.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: NotEnoughData
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Accountability: 63
- Sustainability: 54
- Growth: NotEnoughData
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: Limited
- Program expense ratio: Limited
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 59th 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 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: Fail
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 22.5%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.27; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 17.5%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: Limited
- Revenue growth: Limited
- Asset growth: Limited
Details
- Where the money goes: Financial trends and filed revenue, expense, asset, and liability detail
- Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 1 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $247K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $47K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 20 of 20 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 7 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 16/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.
- High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.