NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School)
“Be the leading source and teacher of wilderness skills and leadership.”
The work
What they do
Wilderness education conducting courses on federal public lands. Teaches Leave No Trace ethics. Major user of wilderness areas in the West and Alaska.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “THE MISSION OF THE NATIONAL OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP SCHOOL IS TO BE THE LEADING SOURCE AND TEACHER OF WILDERNESS SKILLS AND LEADERSHIP THAT SERVE PEOPLE AND THE ENVIRONMENT.”
Where the money went, FY2025
The work, and what it cost
Keeping wilderness wild
$28.3MTHE SCHOOL OFFERS AN EXTENSIVE CURRICULUM OF OUTDOOR COURSES. THE PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP TRAINING AND TRAINING IN WILDERNESS MEDICINE AND WILDERNESS EDUCATION TO APPROXIMATELY 22,600 STUDENTS.
Including $1,402,307 granted onward.
Read it as they filed it
THE SCHOOL OFFERS AN EXTENSIVE CURRICULUM OF OUTDOOR COURSES. THE PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP TRAINING AND TRAINING IN WILDERNESS MEDICINE AND WILDERNESS EDUCATION TO APPROXIMATELY 22,600 STUDENTS.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
The work as filed
$576KTHE SCHOOL PROVIDES GENERAL INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC REGARDING CONSERVATION AND PRESERVATION OF OUR NATURAL RESOURCES THROUGH PUBLISHED MATERIALS AND SEMINARS.
Read it as they filed it
THE SCHOOL PROVIDES GENERAL INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC REGARDING CONSERVATION AND PRESERVATION OF OUR NATURAL RESOURCES THROUGH PUBLISHED MATERIALS AND SEMINARS.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
69 cents of every dollar goes to the work
Read it as a snapshot, not a scorecard. Splits move year to year with grants and campaigns, and healthy shops live all across this range.
$28,860,835 programs, $11,393,471 management, $1,306,981 fundraising. Form 990, FY2025.
The people
Who does the work
Took the helm from Alexander Colhoun, who drew $265,363 in the final year on file.
Honesty note: leadership comes from each year’s federal filing, so it can run a year behind. This one caught a changing of the guard in the act: the FY2025 officer table lists Alexander Colhoun, the return itself is signed by Alexander H Colhoun. Orgs that claim their page can update it same-day. Work at NOLS? Claim this page.
Those 75 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If NOLS is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Make it 76The filings
14 years of filings
14 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year, as filed. Point at the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2011 | $34,549,214 |
| 2012 | $35,594,840 |
| 2013 | $37,684,466 |
| 2014 | $36,466,835 |
| 2015 | $37,607,295 |
| 2016 | $39,182,132 |
| 2017 | $39,897,461 |
| 2018 | $41,740,977 |
| 2019 | $39,933,201 |
| 2020 | $25,522,502 |
| 2021 | $31,393,996 |
| 2022 | $37,650,057 |
| 2023 | $44,684,792 |
| 2025 | $43,013,819 |
From $34.5M in 2011 to $43.0M in FY25, across 14 public filings.
NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) files one related organization on its return: Nandadevi Outdoor Leadership School (501(c)(3)). A related organization shares people or purpose; it does not share the books.
Across the 5 states where they work, the congressional delegations average 43 of 100 on public lands. See the full scorecard
Ways in
How to help
69 cents of your dollar goes straight to the work above.
Give on their site ↗Show upVolunteer with themFind their volunteer door on their own site.
Find it on their site ↗SpeakComment and callOpen comment windows and call scripts for fights like these, ready to send.
Public Lands Action NetworkFollowWatch the mapEvery threatened place in the country, tracked, with who stands for each.
Threatened Lands MapStand with NOLS
61 years on the ground, 75 volunteers, 69 cents of every dollar on the line. That is who is holding it. There is room for one more.