Widener University

Overview

Mission

Empowering our community of learners to discover and create better futures. Building on a bold vision and significant institutional momentum, Widener launched a transformative strategic initiative to think about the future of everything we do and to reimagine student support services to meet the demands of a radically shifting world. Using innovative scenario planning, the university’s most creative and open-minded thinkers developed a suite of forward-thinking strategic narratives to ensure the university remains both proactive and poised to respond with agility to emerging changes. A clear strategy emerged from this work: a focus on institutional nimbleness and the enhancement of the student experience we call “Agility Experienced.” Like its development, the imple.

Operating model

Revenue model

Other-operating. 92% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.

Distribution model

Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 52% for direct work, and 48% for grants.

• Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

• Financial Efficiency: 81
• Transparency & Controls: 71
• Accountability: 98
• Sustainability: 50
• Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Details

• What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site
• Where the money goes: 87% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
• Governance: 23 of 24 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
• Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $256.8M in reported program spending
• Leadership: top reported pay $706K · 38 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
• Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $12.5M reported
• Consistency: 42 of 43 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
• Schedules: 14 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
• Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
• Contacts: How to reach this organization
• Money network: 14 filed money-flow records
• Related organizations: 3 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.
• Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

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: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
• High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 20/100.
• Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 47/100.
• Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
• Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 46/100.
• Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
• High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.