Excelsior University

“Since the prior Form 990 was filed, two significant changes have been made to the College Bylaws: 1. Changes were made to the process for removing Board members and officers. Any officer of the Board and the President of the College may now be removed by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the whole number of Board members with voting authority; 2.Minutes will be taken at all Board executive committee meetings and provided to the full Board within 5 business days. Any actions taken by the Board executive committee will be submitted to the full board for ratification at the next Board meeting immediately following such Board executive committee action.”

“The Form 990 was prepared by the accounting services department at the College. The information within the return was obtained through input from several Officers of the College. Following internal preparation of the return, it was forwarded to the College's independent auditors to seek their input before forwarding to the Audit Committee of the Board of Trustees. The Audit Committee reviewed the final return in depth via teleconference with the Officers of the College and the accounting staff. Management at the College guided the Audit Committee through various schedules included in the filing noting the purpose of the schedule and identifying the origin and sources of the content contained within. All questions posed by the Committee were answered by the Management of the College as documented in the minutes to the meeting. The final return was made available for inspection and review to all Board Members before final filing with the IRS”

“The College has had a written conflict of interest policy since June, 1998. This policy, as amended in 2014 consistent with the NYS Nonprofit Revitalization Act of 2013, is distributed annually to all Officers, Trustees, and key employees each October. In addition to the policy, all officers, trustees and key employees are required to complete an annual disclosure statement indicating conflicts of interest and any direct or indirect professional and/or business relationships with vendors with whom the College has a professional or business arrangement. Annually, the Audit Committee of the Board meets with General Counsel and Secretary to the Board to review all disclosures and to determine the existence and severity of any conflicts. If conflicts exist, the Chair of the Audit Committee informs the full Board for discussion/resolution. Should a conflict exist at the Board level, the affected member is recused from any discussion or vote related to the conflict of interest. Conflicts at levels below the Board are disclosed to the CEO, the VP of HR, and General Counsel to determine the impact of the conflict on the employee's ability to function in the affected role and take steps to resolve the conflict.”

“Financial records are retained in accordance with the College's standard record retention policy. In addition, grant awards, certain mortgage and contractual arrangement require additional retention timeframes. Other departments in the College such as the Registrar and Financial Aid offices retain student records as required under federal regulations and agencies guidelines.”

“Per the College bylaws, the Board shall from time to time determine the compensation of the president, and approve the compensation of all other officers of the College, which shall in all cases be reasonable and commensurate with the services performed by them. In 2010, a comprehensive independent study of the President's compensation was conducted by an external consultant. This study, commissioned under the direction of the Board of Trustees, looked at comparative data from a competitive pool determined by the external consultant. This study was the basis for the employment contract with the College President, which was approved by the Board of Trustees. This contract is subject to renewal, extension, or termination every four years by the Board of Trustees. Additionally, the compensation of the President is reviewed annually by the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees. Each year the President and the Board agree to annual goals and the President provides monthly reports on the progress toward these goals. His achievements are the basis for an annual performance review conducted by the Executive Committee of the Board. All Board discussions are documented in the Board of Trustee meeting minutes. The Office of Human Resources establishes compensation within various grade levels at the College based on several factors such as the current local job market and hiring rate in our area, the demographics of the region including the degree of difficulty and competition in acquiring the particular talent. In 2013, at the direction of the Board of Trustees, the Office of Human Resources completed an executive compensation survey through a consultant. The study assessed nine positions and made comparisons to comparable staff positions at 17 similarly situated institutions. The study had two objectives; 1.Determine if current pay levels are commensurate with peer roles at target institutions, and 2. Ensure that compensation is in line with Section 4958 of the IRS code. The results of the survey suggested that the College is safely positioned at all levels with respect to Section 4958 of the IRS code. Another compensation study will be completed in 2015.”

“Hard copies of financial statements are available upon request. All other applicable documents are available upon request in hard copy and electronic (.pdf) form.”

“Consultant Honoraria $184,307 Total, $150,895 Program service expenses, $32,512 Management and general expenses, $900 Fundraising expenses; Exam Proctoring Fees $1,561,475 Total Program service expenses; Library Costs $1,166,644 Total Program service expenses; Recruiting Costs $148,715 Total Management and general expenses; and Other Contractual Services $7,828,148 Total, $3,868,192 Program service expenses, $3,922,246 Management and general expenses, $37,710 Fundraising expenses.”