Acting Without Boundaries

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
232827465
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2017
Location
Bryn Mawr, PA, USA
Phone
6109228240
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Education N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$489,061
Expenses
$434,019
Assets
$420,137
Liabilities
$47

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHOPPY ROUSE (Vice President)
  • MARY THOMAS (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • KIMBERLY LENGEL (MANAGING DIRECTOR): $125,500 total reported compensation
  • CHRISTINE J ROUSE (Executive Dir.): $5,828 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Transforming lives and building self-esteem in an empowering community of people with physical disabilities through theater that celebrates ability. Acting without boundaries lives out its mission by: challenging perceptions about people with disabilities and their capabilities; producing professional quality theater in nontraditional ways; teaching performing arts skills through year round programs and workshops that build confidence on stage and beyond; creating a community of support for people with physical disabilities and their families; giving back to the community through performances and presentations.

What it reported doing in 2025

The goal of acting without boundaries (awb) program is to provide people of all ages who have a physical disability the opportunity to pursue their love of acting and performing while building their belief in themselves and their abilities. Monthly workshops are conducted by professional actors and theater educators. Participants perform on stage and receive training in memorizing and reciting monologues, acting in plays, singing, and various improvisational techniques. An annual major production is staged for the community following an intensive four day workshop in the fall. The melodies program (formally known as kids are kids) is crucial for awb to live out its mission of improving community awareness, acceptance, access and inclusion for people with physical disabilities. The program is comprised of a robust schedule which includes disability outreach, awareness and education workshops and panel discussions at colleges and universities, elementary and middle-school assemblies mini community performances, retirement facilities and other community centers. Awb also plans field trips to places like the academy of music and the walnut street theatre to provide various experiences.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 94
  • Sustainability: 47
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 68.2%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 76.2%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.28 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 86
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.3%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.97; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 30.3%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.8% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 68.2% of revenue deployed · 76.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 6 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $331K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $126K · 14 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 27 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 45/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 40/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 53/100.