North Hills Christian School 
The information on this page was last updated 6/30/2026. If you see errors or omissions, please email: [email protected]
Summary
NHCS serves the greater Rowan County area, offering a Christ-centered education for students
Contact information
Mailing address:
North Hills Christian School
2970 W. Innes St.
Salisbury, NC 28144
Website: www.northhillschristian.com
Phone: 704-636-3005
Email: [email protected]
Organization details
EIN: 237111580
CEO/President: Maria Lowder
Chairman: Mark Latva
Board size: 7
Founder:
Ruling year: 1971
Tax deductible: Yes
Fiscal year end: 06/30
Member of ECFA: No
Member of ECFA since:
Purpose
NHCS seeks to provide a foundation built on a knowledge of TRUTH, guide students to develop qualities reflecting the CHARACTER of Jesus Christ, and provide opportunities for students to function as the body of Christ in SERVICE to God and in outreach to others.
Mission statement
The mission of North Hills Christian School is to "equip hearts and minds of students to impact the world for Christ."
Statement of faith
North Hills Christian School believes the Bible is inspired, authoritative, inerrant and infallible and is our final authority in matters of doctrine and practice. (2 Timothy 3:16), (2 Peter 1:21)
We believe there is one God, eternally existent in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He created the universe and everything in it. (Genesis 1:1), (Matthew 28:19), (John 10:30)
We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is fully divine and fully human. (John 10:33)
We believe in His virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14), (Matthew 1:23), (Luke 1:35), His sinless life (Hebrews 4:15), (Hebrews 7:26), His miracles (John 2:11), His vicarious and atoning death (1Corinthians 15:3), (Ephesians 1:7), (Hebrews 2:9), His resurrection (John 11:25), (1 Corinthians 15:4), His ascension to the right hand of the Father (Mark 16:19), and His personal future return in power and glory (Acts 1:11), (Revelation 19:11).
We believe that every human is born sinful and in need of salvation. Those who receive salvation are justified by faith in the shed blood of Christ and that only by God's grace and through faith are we saved. (John 3:16-19, John 5:24), (Romans 3:23, Romans 5:8-9), (Ephesians 2:8-10), (Titus 3:5)
We believe that Jesus Christ will return to renew the whole creation and to judge the living and the dead. (John5:28-29)
We believe in the spiritual unity of the body of Christ, which is the Church. It is composed of all believers who have accepted Jesus Christ as Savior. (Romans 8:9), (1 Corinthians 12:12-13), (Galatians 3:26-28)
We believe in the ministry of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to exercise spiritual gifts and live a godly life. (Romans 8:13-14), (1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20), (Ephesians 4:30, Ephesians 5:18)
We believe that the will of God for all believers is to give evidence of sanctification through being honorable in all relations with others and by increasing in the knowledge of Christ and growing in grace. (Romans 12:1-2), (1 Thessalonians 4:3), (James 1:27)
We believe that God created men and women in His image and that these two distinct, yet complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. We believe that marriage is a sacred, exclusive union between a man and a woman and serves as a picture of Christ's relationship with the church. We believe that God has commanded that sexual activity be exclusively reserved to a man and a woman who are married to each other. (Genesis 2:18-24), (Matthew 5:27-28, Matthew 15:18-20, Matthew 19:3-12), (Ephesians 5:22-33), (1 Corinthians 6:9-11&18, 1 Corinthians 7:1-5), (Hebrews 13:4)
We believe that the Bible describes how Christians ought to live and is the final authority of all that we believe concerning truth, morality, and personal conduct.
Donor confidence score
Show donor confidence score details
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Transparency grade
D
To understand our transparency grade, click here.
Financial efficiency ratings
Sector: K-12 Schools/Academies
| Category | Rating | Overall rank | Sector rank |
| Overall efficiency rating | | 441 of 1412 | 55 of 180 |
| Fund acquisition rating | | 16 of 1412 | 9 of 180 |
| Resource allocation rating | | 1127 of 1412 | 153 of 180 |
| Asset utilization rating | | 552 of 1413 | 68 of 180 |
According to the organization's Form 990, it received $3,328,502 in government grants in 2025.
To understand our financial efficiency ratings, click here.
Financial ratios
| Funding ratios | Sector median | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
Return on fundraising efforts Return on fundraising efforts = Fundraising expense / Total contributions | 10% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Fundraising cost ratio Fundraising cost ratio = Fundraising expense / Total revenue | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Contributions reliance Contributions reliance = Total contributions / Total revenue | 13% | 53% | 32% | 36% | 25% | 14% |
Fundraising expense ratio Fundraising expense ratio = Fundraising expense / Total expenses | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Other revenue reliance Other revenue reliance = Total other revenue / Total revenue | 87% | 47% | 68% | 64% | 75% | 86% |
| Operating ratios | Sector median | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
Program expense ratio Program expense ratio = Program services / Total expenses | 83% | 75% | 79% | 80% | 81% | 80% |
Spending ratio Spending ratio = Total expenses / Total revenue | 93% | 89% | 97% | 88% | 95% | 102% |
Program output ratio Program output ratio = Program services / Total revenue | 76% | 66% | 77% | 70% | 76% | 82% |
Savings ratio Savings ratio = Surplus (deficit) / Total revenue | 7% | 11% | 3% | 12% | 5% | -2% |
Reserve accumulation rate Reserve accumulation rate = Surplus (deficit) / Net assets | 7% | 19% | 4% | 19% | 9% | -3% |
General and admin ratio General and admin ratio = Management and general expense / Total expenses | 14% | 25% | 21% | 20% | 19% | 20% |
| Investing ratios | Sector median | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
Total asset turnover Total asset turnover = Total expenses / Total assets | 0.54 | 0.59 | 0.68 | 0.92 | 0.99 | 0.94 |
Degree of long-term investment Degree of long-term investment = Total assets / Total current assets | 3.07 | 9.14 | 7.80 | 4.28 | 5.21 | 10.31 |
Current asset turnover Current asset turnover = Total expenses / Total current assets | 1.79 | 5.42 | 5.31 | 3.93 | 5.14 | 9.72 |
| Liquidity ratios | Sector median | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
Current ratio Current ratio = Total current assets / Total current liabilities | 2.79 | 1.60 | 1.35 | 1.72 | 1.89 | 0.97 |
Current liabilities ratio Current liabilities ratio = Total current liabilities / Total current assets | 0.35 | 0.63 | 0.74 | 0.58 | 0.53 | 1.03 |
Liquid reserve level Liquid reserve level = (Total current assets - Total current liabilities) / (Total expenses / 12) | 3.98 | 0.83 | 0.58 | 1.28 | 1.10 | -0.04 |
| Solvency ratios | Sector median | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
Liabilities ratio Liabilities ratio = Total liabilities / Total assets | 29% | 60% | 58% | 36% | 40% | 48% |
Debt ratio Debt ratio = Debt / Total assets | 10% | 52% | 48% | 22% | 29% | 37% |
Reserve coverage ratio Reserve coverage ratio = Net assets / Total expenses | 119% | 68% | 62% | 70% | 60% | 55% |
Financials
| Balance sheet | |||||
| Assets | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Cash | $467,191 | $478,430 | $726,085 | $209,934 | $341,811 |
| Receivables, inventories, prepaids | $155,809 | $92,142 | $64,327 | $56,804 | $50,323 |
| Short-term investments | $614,782 | $557,664 | $506,088 | $501,121 | $0 |
| Other current assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current assets | $1,237,782 | $1,128,236 | $1,296,500 | $767,859 | $392,134 |
| Long-term investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $390,763 |
| Fixed assets | $10,076,323 | $7,600,857 | $4,141,987 | $3,234,655 | $3,259,748 |
| Other long-term assets | $0 | $71,094 | $112,258 | $0 | $0 |
| Total long-term assets | $10,076,323 | $7,671,951 | $4,254,245 | $3,234,655 | $3,650,511 |
| Total assets | $11,314,105 | $8,800,187 | $5,550,745 | $4,002,514 | $4,042,645 |
| Liabilities | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Payables and accrued expenses | $600,050 | $528,669 | $356,480 | $142,056 | $136,484 |
| Other current liabilities | $174,589 | $307,506 | $398,797 | $264,862 | $268,183 |
| Total current liabilities | $774,639 | $836,175 | $755,277 | $406,918 | $404,667 |
| Debt | $5,914,468 | $4,209,490 | $1,196,602 | $1,178,377 | $1,480,166 |
| Due to (from) affiliates | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other long-term liabilities | $59,623 | $48,759 | $51,168 | $33,726 | $41,731 |
| Total long-term liabilities | $5,974,091 | $4,258,249 | $1,247,770 | $1,212,103 | $1,521,897 |
| Total liabilities | $6,748,730 | $5,094,424 | $2,003,047 | $1,619,021 | $1,926,564 |
| Net assets | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Without donor restrictions | $4,510,500 | $3,171,989 | $3,013,924 | $1,882,372 | $1,725,318 |
| With donor restrictions | $54,875 | $533,774 | $533,774 | $501,121 | $390,763 |
| Net assets | $4,565,375 | $3,705,763 | $3,547,698 | $2,383,493 | $2,116,081 |
| Revenues and expenses | |||||
| Revenue | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Total contributions | $3,992,666 | $1,997,231 | $2,095,265 | $1,036,911 | $537,772 |
| Program service revenue | $3,503,330 | $4,073,863 | $3,678,501 | $3,081,054 | $3,180,989 |
| Membership dues | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Investment income | $62,786 | $79,295 | $3,736 | $41,799 | $25,258 |
| Other revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total other revenue | $3,566,116 | $4,153,158 | $3,682,237 | $3,122,853 | $3,206,247 |
| Total revenue | $7,558,782 | $6,150,389 | $5,777,502 | $4,159,764 | $3,744,019 |
| Expenses | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Program services | $5,005,245 | $4,717,302 | $4,060,761 | $3,182,133 | $3,054,722 |
| Management and general | $1,707,651 | $1,276,225 | $1,030,953 | $768,194 | $758,670 |
| Fundraising | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total expenses | $6,712,896 | $5,993,527 | $5,091,714 | $3,950,327 | $3,813,392 |
| Change in net assets | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Surplus (deficit) | $845,886 | $156,862 | $685,788 | $209,437 | ($69,373) |
| Other changes in net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total change in net assets | $845,886 | $156,862 | $685,788 | $209,437 | ($69,373) |
Compensation
| Name | Title | Compensation |
| Maria Lowder | Executive Di | $168,418 |
Compensation data as of: 6/30/2025
Response from ministry
No response has been provided by this ministry.
The information below was provided to MinistryWatch by the ministry itself. It was last updated 6/30/2026. To update the information below, please email: [email protected]
History
North Hills Christian School has a rich heritage and continues to remain faithful to the mission upon which it was founded. In 1967, North Hills Christian School grew out of the shared vision of three families: the David B. Davis family, the Roger Harrison family, and the William Ryburn family. These families wanted to provide Rowan County and the surrounding areas with the choice of an educational setting that would be both academically challenging and spiritually transforming.
The school opened its doors that first year to 28 students. Today, North Hills Christian serves 600 plus students from Early Education (3- and 4- years old) - 12th grade and continues to provide an excellent Christ-centered classically influenced education as a co-ed, college-preparatory day school.