Lake Forest College EIN 36-2167770

Lake Forest College

EIN  36-2167770 Higher education institution Lake Forest, IL Founded 1857
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 7/6/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$100M+
What they do
Educates students in a residential liberal arts setting.
Leadership
Jill Baren · President (until 12/10/24) · $710K
Money in and out
$165.1M revenue, $155.5M expenses
Bottom line
+6% operating surplus

Educates students in a residential liberal arts setting. For fiscal year 2025 it reported $165.1M in revenue, $155.5M in expenses, and $231.7M in net assets.Pt I

Financial scale & money flow · FY2025
Total revenue
$165.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$155.5M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$231.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $9.6M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.90 Management & general $0.09 Fundraising $0.02
Operating surplus
+6%
revenue over expenses, this legal entity▲ +378% vs prior filing year
Payroll share
25%
of this entity's spending is salaries & benefits0% vs prior filing year
Program spending
90%
of expenses reach program services0% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2025 · Form 990
Revenue
$165.1M
FY2025▲ +17%
Expenses
$155.5M
FY2025▲ +8%
Total assets
$287.2M
FY2025▲ +7%
Total liabilities
$55.5M
FY2025▼ -3%
Total revenue
$165.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$155.5M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$231.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$9.6M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$287.2M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B90%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 334
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 434
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $139.7M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Instruction and research includes expenses for all activities that are part of the instructional program and for activities specifically organized to produce research.

$104.2Mprogram expense
02

Student services are considered programmatic and include activities that contribute to student emotional and physical well-being and intellectual, cultural and social development outside the formal instructional program.

$19.3Mprogram expense
03

Auxiliary enterprises include expenses relating to the operation of the auxiliary activities such as housing, dining services, and parking.

$16.1Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CLake Forest College
EINHdr · item D36-2167770
Principal addressHdr · item CLake Forest, IL
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.lakeforest.edu
Year of formationHdr · item L1857
State of legal domicileHdr · item MIL
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFColleges & Universities (B420)
Ruling yearIRS BMFFeb 1934

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a34
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b34
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2024); the FY2025 filing did not itemize Part VII
President (until 12/10/24)
$709,690Pt VII · Sec A
VP for Finance/Planning; Treasurer
$281,169Pt VII · Sec A
VP for Advancement and Secretary
$240,525Pt VII · Sec A
Vice President for Campus Life
$239,646Pt VII · Sec A
Of the Krebs Center for Humanities
$207,868Pt VII · Sec A
VP for Career Advancement/Athletics
$196,406Pt VII · Sec A
Provost and Dean of Faculty
$185,474Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Information Officer
$184,936Pt VII · Sec A

Jill Baren’s $710K as President (until 12/10/24) is at the 61st percentile of top reported officer pay among 674 $100M+ education nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Jill Baren$709,690$546,029$243,855
Stephen D Schutt$474,234$448,691
Stephen D Schutt$230,413$413,403$433,036
Shawn Vogen$297,655$227,458
Lori Sundberg$281,169$268,939$212,887$201,492
Katie Sue Spieth$240,525$122,768
Christopher Ellertson$239,646$231,552$222,629$215,324
Christopher Ellertson$213,529$210,939

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Program service revenue$121.3M · 73%
Contributions & grants$40.6M · 25%
Investment income$1.7M · 1%
Other revenue$1.4M · 1%
Program service revenue73%$121.3M
Contributions & grants25%$40.6M
Investment income1%$1.7M
Other revenue1%$1.4M
— government grantsLn 1e$4.1M
Total revenueLn 12$165.1M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.90 Management & general $0.09 Fundraising $0.02
Program services90%$139.7M
Management & general9%$13.4M
Fundraising2%$2.4M
Total functional expensesLn 25$155.5M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$16.6M
Total assetsLn 16$287.2M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$55.5M
Total net assetsLn 32$231.7M
Months of cash on handcomputed1.3

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2025 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $137.9M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $155.5M · Less non-cash grants $9.8M · Cash operating expenses/yr $145.6M
11.4 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $139.7M · Total expenses $155.5M
90%
Management & General
Management & general $13.4M · Total expenses $155.5M
9%
Fundraising
Fundraising $2.4M · Total expenses $155.5M
2%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $2.0M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $29.1M
$0.07 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $40.6M · Total revenue $165.1M
25%
Government reliance
Government grants $4.1M · Total revenue $165.1M
2%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $121.3M · Total revenue $165.1M
73%
Investment reliance
Investment income $1.7M · Total revenue $165.1M
+1%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $121.3M · Total expenses $155.5M
78%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $165.1M · Prior year $141.5M
+17%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $110.4M · FY2024 $165.1M
+8%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $231.7M · Beginning of year $211.6M
+9%
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $165.1M · Expenses $155.5M
+6%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities $55.5M · Total assets $287.2M
19%
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $231.7M · Total assets $287.2M
81%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $0 · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $121.3M · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $287.2M
42%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Jill Baren · Reported title President (until 12/10/24) · Highest reported compensation $710K · Total expenses $155.5M
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $38.6M · Total expenses $155.5M
25%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 90%
Overhead ratio 9%
Fundraising cost ratio 6%
Revenue growth 17%
Investment management fee ratio 0%
Legal fee ratio 0%
Accounting fee ratio 0%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 3 funders$75K
See all 3 funders →
Grants paid · 6 grants · $380.9M · 2019–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$77,727,961
Unitemized GrantFY2023$72,158,053
Unitemized GrantFY2022$66,135,576
Unitemized GrantFY2021$61,291,693
Unitemized GrantFY2020$55,109,796
Unitemized GrantFY2019$48,461,348

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2025 (Latest)$165.1M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$141.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$140.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$127.6M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$111.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$110.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2025IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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