University of Holy Cross

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
720642832
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
New Orleans, LA, USA
Phone
5043947744
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$21,284,151
Expenses
$23,710,443
Assets
$50,624,687
Liabilities
$14,238,184

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

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DR STANTON MCNEELY (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • DR STANTON MCNEELY (PRESIDENT): $232,627 total reported compensation
  • DR PATRICIA PRECHTER (DEAN): $155,876 total reported compensation
  • DR LISA SULLIVAN (PROVOST): $137,342 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The university of holy cross, a catholic institution of higher learning, is an inclusive student-centered learning community focused on academic excellence and innovative teaching. Rooted in the traditions of the marianites of holy cross, the university is committed to educating the minds and hearts of its students through freedom of inquiry, the pursuit of truth, and compassionate care for all.

What it reported doing in 2024

Scholarships, grants, & loans - for academic year 2024-2025, 133 students received scholarships from uhc and 39 students received scholarships from private sources. Most students were awarded the scholarships on the basis of academic merit and/or unmet financial need. Others were granted awards based on academic merit only. A total of 172 scholarships in the amount of $748,867 have been awarded ($672,824 from uhc scholarships and $76,043 from private source scholarships).for fiscal year 2024-2025, 603 students were able to receive some form of financial aid. Many students would not be able to pursue a post-secondary education were it not for the financial aid programs. The university participates in the title iv federal campus based programs as well as the federal pell grant program and disadvantaged nursing scholarships.- 236 students were assisted and able to receive $1,221,056 in pell grants.- 526 students received $6,146,046 in federal subsidized and unsubsidized stafford loans.- 44 students received $57,000 in federal s.e.o.g.- 16 students received $36,241 in federal work-study grants.- 88 students received $464,020 from the Louisiana t.o.p.s. Program.- 44 students received $95,000 from Louisiana g.o. Grants.- an additional $235,139 in student aid was from various other awards and scholarships.university of holy cross was able to award $9,003,369 in student aid from institutional, private, state, and federal sources.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 92% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 50% for direct work, and 50% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87.6%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 76.2%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.39 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -11.4%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.14; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.7%; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.7% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.5% per year; rating input score 100; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 87.6% of revenue deployed · 76.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $18.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $233K · 23 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.4M reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • 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: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 9/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.