Adirondack Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 161535724
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Lake Placid, NY, USA
- Phone
- 5185239904
- Rating
- 82
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Community Foundations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $21,594,091
- Expenses
- $12,846,663
- Assets
- $117,799,803
- Liabilities
- $29,312,698
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
28 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- CALI BROOKS (PRESIDENT & CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- CALI BROOKS (PRESIDENT & CEO): $180,726 total reported compensation
- MATT DONAHUE (VP PHILANTHROPY): $131,602 total reported compensation
- BRANDY HOBSON (INTERIM CFO): $124,115 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Adirondack foundation (the "foundation") is a community foundation and a tax-exempt, not-for-profit, autonomous, publicly supported, philanthropic institution formed for the following purposes:1. To serve as a permanent collection of endowed and other funds benefiting adirondack communities, their institutions and residents, including but not limited to support for arts and humanities, community and economic development, education, environment, health, historic preservation, libraries, recreation, social services and youth programs through grant making and other programs.2. To do any other lawful act incidental or connected with the foregoing purposes or in advancement thereof that is consistent with the foundation's certificate of incorporation and approved by the foundation's board of trustees.
What it reported doing in 2024
Adirondack community foundation plays a unique role in the region. 1) it connects people, ideas, and resources to improve lives and expand opportunities. 2) stewards charitable assets and donations from generous donors and organizations who care about the area and want to make a difference. 3) makes grants to nonprofits, schools, organizations and municipalities. 4) is committed to being sincere collaborators and ambassadors for the people of the adirondacks; accountable to communities, donors, partners, and each other; and catalysts for positive change. The foundation stewards more than 300 charitable funds; and makes grants in the areas of basic needs, educational pathways, economic vitality, environments, arts, and culture.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 75% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 78% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filed totals do not add up and liabilities are high compared with assets.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 74
- Transparency & Controls: 76
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 82
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 64.5%; rating input score 65
- Program expense ratio: 91.4%; rating input score 91
- Fundraising efficiency: $30.64 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 90.6%; rating input score 91; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 40.5%; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 9.17; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.25; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 4.7%; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 15.1% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 11.5% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 9.9% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 64.5% of revenue deployed · 91.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 23 of 23 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $11.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $181K · 28 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 39 of 40 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 318 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 315 filed related-organization links
- 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.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 52/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 54/100.