Reed’s Annual Earnings and Expenditures Explored

Page 1 of Reed College Form 990

Courtesy of Guidestar.org




Every year, nonprofit institutions are required to file annual reports called “990s,” which outline their expenses for the year and attest to the basic financial health of the organization. The IRS Form 990 requires the organization to describe its mission, significant activities, financial details on revenues, expenses, assets, and liabilities, as well as information on how the organization is governed. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Reed College is no different, and their 990 for the fiscal year ending in June 2023, filed May 2, 2024, is now available online. This article explains the content of Reed’s fiscal year 2022-2023 990 for students. 



The overall revenue for the 2022-2023 fiscal year came to a total of $150,353,460. The total expenses came in at $152,129,700, and the revenue-less expenses were -$1,776,240, a stark change from the year prior, as they totaled $38,461,581 the year prior. Total expenses came to $146,361,428, leading to a total net assets of $863,292,182 by the end of the fiscal year. Further, according to the form, Reed's mission as stated is to “provide education in the liberal arts and sciences.” The school has a reported total of 30 members of the governing body–29 trustees and President Audrey Bilger–plus 1,757 individuals employed in the calendar year 2022, and a total of 6,836 volunteers.

As of fall 2022, there were a total of 1,506 full-time enrolled students, and 304 degrees conferred in the 22-23 school year. Reed’s expenses as a result of this were $21,735,560, including grants totaling $16,883,586, and on top of this, auxiliary services such as students living in dorms, using dining facilities and the bookstore, which came to $4,851,974.



Of the 1,506 full-time enrolled students, 845, or about 56% received scholarships for tuition, fees, room and board, totaling $35,807,729. Fellowships and research grants were awarded to 341 students, or about 23% of the student body, totaling $1,329,999, not including the $2,498,707 that was spent on 32 research grants paid with federal funds, spanning the Biology, Chemistry, Humanities, Physics, Psychology, Math, and Sociology departments, and the nuclear reactor. Finally, scholarships for course and program fees were granted to 111 students, or about 7.4% of students, which came to $317,365.



When it came to admin salaries, President Audrey Bilger was compensated the highest salary for the year with a total of $588,465, plus an added $48,161, which is an estimated amount of other compensation from the organization and related organizations. The chart below outlines all admin salaries in descending order from highest paid salaries. Each of these individual salaries saw around a 3.5% increase from the previous fiscal year. Further, only one member of the administration received a loan from the college, and that was Milyon Trulove, Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, who received a loan for housing in the sum of $60,000, $45,699 of which is still owed as of the filing date of the 990, June 30, 2023.




Chart of Reed administration earnings

Courtesy of Guidestar.org




Reed’s total investments by region are as follows: Central America and the Caribbean, $24,369,591, Europe (including Iceland and Greenland) $10,936,013, South Asia $3,144,706, and East Asia and the Pacific $2,158,709, for a total of $40,609,019 of investments outside of the United States. The form does not include any further details on these investments.



Funds paid to independent contractors totaled $19,933,884 and included $7,748,145 to Reimers & Jolivette Inc. for construction costs, $5,542,545 to Bon Appetit for food services, $3,708,304 to Fortis Construction Inc. for construction, $1,842,602 to Otto Harrassowitz for library services and subscriptions, and $1,092,288 to Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP for architectural services.



All of this comes to total contributions of $10,905,209, as compared to $8,981,442 the year prior, net investment earnings, gains, and losses of $46,718,662 ­compared to $29,276,734 the year before, grants or scholarships, $10,114,676 compared to $9,254,153 the year prior, other expenditures for facilities and programs being $21,895,500, with $20,216,123 the year before, and administrative expenses $1,181,780 rising from $1,044,355 the previous year. This all comes to an end-of-year balance of $720,867,118.



If you would like more information on Reed’s finances, the Form 990 can be found online using websites such as Guidestar or ProPublica, and Reed also occasionally publishes the form on their website. To find it, simply search “Reed Institute 990” on your preferred search engine.



NewsMadeleine Voth