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University of the South EIN 62-0475697

University of the South

EIN  62-0475697 Higher education institution Sewanee, TN Founded 1858
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 7/5/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$100M+
What they do
Provides Episcopal liberal arts and theological higher education, complemented by robust student services, co-curricular organizations, and community-building activities.
Leadership
Robert Pearigen · Vice Chancellor/President · $557K
Money in and out
$246.1M revenue, $193.8M expenses
Bottom line
+21% operating surplus

Provides Episcopal liberal arts and theological higher education, complemented by robust student services, co-curricular organizations, and community-building activities. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $246.1M in revenue, $193.8M in expenses, and $785.1M in net assets.Pt I

Financial scale & money flow · FY2024
Total revenue
$246.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$193.8M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$785.1M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $52.3M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.88 Management & general $0.11 Fundraising $0.02
Operating surplus
+21%
revenue over expenses, this legal entity▲ +658% vs prior filing year
Payroll share
40%
of this entity's spending is salaries & benefits▼ -1% vs prior filing year
Program spending
88%
of expenses reach program services▼ -1% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$246.1M
FY2024▲ +28%
Expenses
$193.8M
FY2024▲ +3%
Total assets
$882.4M
FY2024▲ +4%
Total liabilities
$97.3M
FY2024▼ -7%
Total revenue
$246.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$193.8M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$785.1M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$52.3M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$882.4M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B88%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 3171
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 4166
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $157.7M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Instruction

In the college of arts and sciences, students work closely with distinguished and diverse faculty in a demanding course of humane and scientific study that prepares them for lives of achievement and service.

$108.6Mprogram expense
02

Housing and Auxiliary Services

The college is a residential liberal arts college. Room and board programs are designed to encourage opportunities for conversation and community building beyond the classroom. Besides traditional residence dormitories, students may also choose to live in a theme house which brings together students with a common interest.

$26.7Mprogram expense
03

Student Services

A wide range of co-curricular and recreational opportunities are available to complement the academic experience and support student life. More than a hundred organizations and clubs facilitate social interaction between students and between students and the broader sewanee community.

$22.3Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CUniversity of the South
EINHdr · item D62-0475697
Principal addressHdr · item CSewanee, TN
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.sewanee.edu
Year of formationHdr · item L1858
State of legal domicileHdr · item MTN
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFEducation (B99)
Ruling yearIRS BMFFeb 1947

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a171
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b166
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
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
Robert Pearigen
Vice Chancellor/President
$557,102Pt VII · Sec A
Nancy Berner
Former Vice Chancellor/President
$301,686Pt VII · Sec A
Earl Williams
Treasurer Thru June 30, 2025
$266,303Pt VII · Sec A
$262,636Pt VII · Sec A
Deborah Vaughn
Former VP University Relations
$252,321Pt VII · Sec A
Marquitte Starkey
General Counsel
$210,597Pt VII · Sec A
Alyssa Summers
Assoc Professor
$201,612Pt VII · Sec A
Sibby Anderson Thompkins
Vice President for Community Building and Connections
$199,957Pt VII · Sec A

Robert Pearigen’s $557K as Vice Chancellor/President is at the 47th 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

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Reuben Brigety——$280,500$690,182$335,797—
John M McCardell JR———$411,708$450,583$584,894
Robert Pearigen$557,102$272,782————
Nancy Berner$301,686$389,865$481,062$231,343$232,099$248,887
Earl Williams$266,303—$245,478$217,679$215,031$212,807
Lisa Stephenson—$260,954$263,429$250,225——
Scott Wilson$262,636$257,855$260,243$161,661$149,085—
Douglass Williams—$261,621————

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$146.7M · 60%
Investment income$59.8M · 24%
Contributions & grants$20.4M · 8%
Other revenue$19.3M · 8%
Program service revenue60%$146.7M
Investment income24%$59.8M
Contributions & grants8%$20.4M
Other revenue8%$19.3M
— government grantsLn 1e$1.9M
Total revenueLn 12$246.1M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.88 Management & general $0.11 Fundraising $0.02
Program services88%$170.5M
Management & general11%$20.4M
Fundraising2%$2.9M
Total functional expensesLn 25$193.8M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$63.0M
Total assetsLn 16$882.4M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$97.3M
Total net assetsLn 32$785.1M
Months of cash on handcomputed3.9

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $579.4M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $193.8M · Less non-cash grants $3.0M · Cash operating expenses/yr $190.8M
36.4 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $170.5M · Total expenses $193.8M
88%
Management & General
Management & general $20.4M · Total expenses $193.8M
11%
Fundraising
Fundraising $2.9M · Total expenses $193.8M
2%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $2.6M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $19.7M
$0.13 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $20.4M · Total revenue $246.1M
8%
Government reliance
Government grants $1.9M · Total revenue $246.1M
1%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $146.7M · Total revenue $246.1M
60%
Investment reliance
Investment income $59.8M · Total revenue $246.1M
+24%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $146.7M · Total expenses $193.8M
76%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $246.1M · Prior year $192.8M
+28%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $160.8M · FY2024 $246.1M
+9%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $785.1M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $246.1M · Expenses $193.8M
+21%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $882.4M
—
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $785.1M · Total assets $882.4M
89%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $137.1M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $379.3M · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $882.4M
59%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Robert Pearigen · Reported title Vice Chancellor/President · Highest reported compensation $557K · Total expenses $193.8M
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $76.7M · Total expenses $193.8M
40%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 88%——
Overhead ratio 11%——
Fundraising cost ratio 14%——
Revenue growth 28%——

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
Rivol I Hinton Carter Test Trust Executed 08-05-82FY2025$394K
The Ayco Charitable FoundationFY2025$75K
T Rowe Price Program for Charitable Giving INCFY2025$28K
North Georgia Community Foundation INCFY2025$20K
Tch Ruth McBride Polk TrustFY2025$20K
J Bayard Snowden Insurance TrustFY2025$8K
Charles Timmons FoundationFY2025$4K
Total grants receivedfrom 7 funders$550K
See all 7 funders →
Grants paid · 3 grants · $2.5M · 2019–2021
Unitemized GrantFY2021$1,425,834
Unitemized GrantFY2020$547,998
Unitemized GrantFY2019$546,097

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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
FY2024$192.8M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$175.3M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$87.9M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$255.9M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$160.8M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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