Zion Forever Project

What it reported doing in 2025

Enhancing the visitor experience through education initiatives: we continue to fund all of zion's education initiatives, including distance-learning programs that broadcast globally, bringing zion and zion rangers into classrooms around the world. Our junior ranger program engages 43,000 children annually, helping them explore and learn about the park. Additionally, our flagship programs, such as "concrete to canyon," bring title 1 schoolchildren into the park for their first zion experience and fund ranger visits to local classrooms, providing invaluable educational experiences. Zfp also funds southern Utah universitys (suu) intergovernmental internship cooperative (iic), which places students in public land positions across the region, offering hands-on experience and fostering the next generation of conservation leaders. Funding for search and rescue (sar) training programs: in 2025, zfp provided essential funding for various search and rescue (sar) training programs, enhancing the capabilities and preparedness of our responders. These comprehensive training sessions covered basic sar techniques, climbing and rappelling, swiftwater rescue, and psychological training. Acknowledging the tough conditions and challenging scenarios that sar teams encounter, we also emphasized mental health support for responders and caretakers. These programs ensure that our sar teams are not only equipped with the essential technical skills but also possess the emotional resilience needed to cope with the stresses of being on-site during critical incidents. This funding has significantly improved the safety and effectiveness of our sar operations, benefiting both the responders and the communities they serve. Partnering with the parks to ensure employee wellness: zfp offers free, confidential professional mental health support to national park service (nps) employees, zion forever staff, volunteers, and interns. This initiative includes weekly, hour-long sessions with licensed therapists focused on trauma therapy, stress management, and overall mental well- being. The program is part of a larger commitment to fostering a resilient, supportive workplace culture at zion forever and among the national park staff.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 96.3%; rating input score 96
• Program expense ratio: 67.8%; rating input score 68
• Fundraising efficiency: $4.22 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th 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; 64th 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: Fail
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 30.5%; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.32; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 9.4%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 14.7% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 12.9% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 16.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings