Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jun 1993.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
96 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
40 people listed on the 990; $1.6M paid to officers and key staff.
Greg Elzinga’s $378K as Presdient is at the 22nd 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
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Wiebe Boer | $300,290 | $669,522 | $361,337 | — | — |
| Dr Michael Leroy | — | — | $426,978 | $351,202 | $377,627 |
| Greg Elzinga | $378,103 | $209,379 | $177,873 | — | — |
| Dr Amber Warner | $234,343 | — | — | — | — |
| Dr Sarah Visser | $213,153 | $230,937 | $170,615 | $154,422 | $145,976 |
| Dr Noah Toly | $206,487 | $230,393 | — | — | — |
| Dirk Pruis | $194,548 | $216,543 | $75,469 | — | — |
| Tim Fennema | — | $144,800 | $204,200 | $55,234 | — |
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.
See Calvin University executive salaries →Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Provides a rigorous Christian liberal arts education, equipping students with academic support, diverse majors, and values to serve as agents of renewal in the world.
Questions for Calvin University
Your first name shows with your question. Calvin University answers here, for everyone.
Calvin university is a comprehensive liberal arts university in the reformed tradition of historic christianity seeking to be agents of renewal in the academy, church, and society. The university offers 124 baccalaureate and three master's degree programs.
Calvin university's student services and activities are intended to enhance students' spiritual, social, emotional, and physical well-being. The university's student services and activities include areas such as regular worship and biblical learning opportunities, a health services clinic, emotional wellness support, student…
Calvin university provides academic support services for the primary missions of instruction, research, and public service. Academic support services include areas such as libraries, technology support, academic tutoring and coaching, writing assistance, on-campus MUSEUMS/GALLERIES, and other services that directly assist instructional…
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
Federal money
Plus 15 smaller programs.
The auditor reported no findings.
Plus 17 smaller programs.
The auditor reported 4 findings: a weakness in money controls.
Plus 18 smaller programs.
The auditor reported 2 findings: a weakness in money controls.
Plus 22 smaller programs.
The auditor reported 1 finding: a weakness in money controls.
By the numbers
The FY2021 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | FY21 | FY20 | FY19 | FY18 | FY17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| End of yearLn 1g | $257.0M | $206.0M | $181.9M | $166.0M | $151.8M |
| Given inLn 1b | $9.1M | $25.6M | $9.0M | $8.7M | $6.8M |
| SpentLn 1d–1f | $7.2M | $6.2M | $5.8M | $5.7M | $5.5M |
| Line | Start FY21 | End FY21 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $23.2M | $10.2M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $264.2M | $348.2M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $203.7M | $204.3M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $532.4M | $586.4M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $153.7M | $135.3M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $378.7M | $451.0M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $634K | $634K | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $57.3M | $57.3M | ||
| Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3 | $92K | $92K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $971K | $202K | $574K | $195K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $44.0M | $41.5M | $1.1M | $1.4M |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $10.1M | $9.2M | $465K | $465K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $3.0M | $2.7M | $146K | $142K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $152K | $152K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $84K | $84K | ||
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $164K | $164K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $334K | $334K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $2.9M | $2.6M | $228K | $31K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $502K | $498K | $37 | $3K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $4.9M | $4.6M | $158K | $109K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $1.7M | $1.6M | $63K | $59K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $10.3M | $10.3M | $7K | $20K |
| TravelLn 17 | $457K | $429K | $9K | $19K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $426K | $360K | $56K | $11K |
| InterestLn 20 | $103K | $103K | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $6.8M | $6.8M | $5K | $5K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $390K | $83K | $307K | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $6.9M | $6.9M | $23K | $1K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $1.1M | $899K | $120K | $76K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $153.3M | $146.7M | $3.9M | $2.7M |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 LatestFiled with the IRS May 1, 2026 | $193.0M | $212.8M | −$19.8M | $500.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024Filed with the IRS May 8, 2025 | $184.9M | $198.0M | −$13.2M | $495.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS May 10, 2024 | $190.9M | $180.0M | $10.8M | $477.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS May 15, 2023 | $190.4M | $168.9M | $21.5M | $451.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS May 3, 2022 | $167.0M | $153.3M | $13.7M | $451.0M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $166,988,840 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 31 of 31 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $166,988,840 across 10 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $153,262,573 across 23 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $586,373,912 assets, 20 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $451,036,882 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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