Alpha Rho Chi Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363697197
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2007
Location
Cincinnati, OH, USA
Phone
5137511133
Rating
65
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$58,625
Expenses
$34,346
Assets
$1,117,127
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Phillip Buckberg (President)
  • William Bradford (Vice President)

People named in this filing

  • Phillip Buckberg (President)
  • William Bradford (Vice President)
  • Richard Jenkins (Secretary)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

Scholarships for students of architecture and the allied arts; Grants for professional, educational programs; Grants for promoting architectural education and awards, Grants for emerging professionals' licensing fees and study materials

What it reported doing in 2025

Charles Burchard Professional program to support professional, educational programs at national convention, architectural schools, and /or alumni associations and chapters of Alpha Rho Chi Fraternity at colleges and universities in America.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 49
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 70
  • Sustainability: 80
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 46.7%; rating input score 47
  • Program expense ratio: 48.1%; rating input score 48
  • Fundraising efficiency: $15.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 91.9%; rating input score 92; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • 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: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 41.4%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 32.53; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -8.9% per year; rating input score 0; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -18.3% per year; rating input score 0; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 46.7% of revenue deployed · 48.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $17K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 39 of 40 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 47/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 48/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.