The 990 form filed by ETS for the year ending September 2022 is now available via Propublica and the IRS. Some highlights follow:
- Revenue was 1.1 billion dollars (down about 26 million from the year before)
- Salaries accounted for 346 million of spending (down about 28 million)
- Total expenses were 1.1 billion dollars (about the same)
- Revenue less expenses was a cool 5 million on the year (down about 42 million)
- Total assets owned by ETS are valued at about 1.7 billion dollars (down a whopping 257 million)
The top earner for the year was former president Walter Macdonald, who was paid about 1.3 million dollars.
Speaking of top earners, to my eye only one of the thirteen most compensated employees for the year are still with ETS today. The only one remaining seems to be Ralph Taylor Smith, who manages ETS’s private equity holdings. Out the door are (as far as I can tell): the President, the Chief Information Officer, the COO Global Education, the Chief Financial Officer, the General Counsel, the Senior VP of Research and Development, the Chief Marketing Officer, the VP Operations, the Treasurer, the Chair of Policy Evaluation and Research, the COO (two different guys), and the (combination) Deputy Counsel & Chief Diversity Officer. Along with others. That is quite a change in leadership.
ProctorU was paid 26.3 million dollars for proctoring services.
$125,000 was spent on lobbying. That’s more than usual.
The ETS hotel brought in revenue of 2.6 million dollars. Surrounded by 370 acres of peaceful woodlands, it’s a perfect place for meetings, weddings and other special events.
The ETS hotel had expenses of 2.8 million dollars. One popular Youtuber described it as “sort of like a glammed up university residence. I guess.”
Fun stuff like Kira Talent and Vericant are on the books now.
Why should one care? One probably shouldn’t care. But ETS is a tax-exempt organization that still has an outsized influence on the lives of millions of young people in America and around the world. The point is not to gawk at the large numbers but just to share things that smarter people than me ought to be writing about.