West Virginia Independent Colleges and Universities Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
550465880
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Charleston, WV, USA
Phone
3043455525
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$982,887
Expenses
$587,681
Assets
$4,160,682
Liabilities
$2,606,490

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

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BEN BEAKES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • BEN BEAKES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $100,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of wvicu is to advance collectively the interests of West Virginia's independent colleges and universities and their students.

What it reported doing in 2025

Wvicu requests contributions from foundations, corporations, and individuals that are used for scholarships granted to West Virginia students that demonstrate high academic performance and financial need at our six member colleges and universities.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 82% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 98% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most filed governance safeguards are in place. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 58
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 63
  • Sustainability: 68
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 47.1%; rating input score 47
  • Program expense ratio: 76%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $25.03 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 53.8%; rating input score 54; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 40.2%; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.08; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.63; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: Limited

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2.6% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.2% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.4% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 47.1% of revenue deployed · 76% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 13 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $447K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $100K · 14 people listed
  • Consistency: 20 of 21 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 6 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 47/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 54/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 9/100.