American Foundation for Biological Research
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 362229561
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Rockville, MD, USA
- Phone
- 3018813300
- Rating
- 69
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $6,920,488
- Expenses
- $5,471,011
- Assets
- $21,389,959
- Liabilities
- $6,586,882
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
12 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- EDWIN ASHOURIAN (EXECUTIVE DI): $237,812 total reported compensation
- MARGARET MENTINK-KANE (CHIEF SCIENT): $208,696 total reported compensation
- ALEX FEDERLINE (BIOREPOSITOR): $124,038 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The american foundation for biological research (the foundation) is a non- profit organization incorporated in the state of Illinois on march 16, 1948. The biomedical research institute was recognized as a trade name for the foundation in the state of Maryland in march 1994. The foundation was established with a major emphasis on cryobiology and tropical disease research. Schistosomiasis, a major focus at the foundation for more than 30 years, is a tropical disease that affects hundreds of millions of people in sub-saharan africa, portions of south america and parts of rural asia. In addition to basic schistosomiasis research, the foundation provides life cycle stages of schistosoma parasites to domestic and international laboratories, principally through contracts with the national institutes of health. The foundation maintains the following two major program services: biorepository facilities - the foundation houses a cold storage biospecimen repository which supports research in acq
What it reported doing in 2025
The foundation maintains the following two major program services: biorepository facilities - the foundation houses a cold storage biospecimen repository which supports research in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and other clinically important diseases. Schistosomiasis resource center - parasite reagent production and distribution as well as education and training are focused on the major tropical disease of schistosomiasis. The foundation provides life stages of schistosoma parasites to scientists in the domestic and international research community.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 87% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- 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.
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 program spending has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 57
- Transparency & Controls: 71
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 62
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 59.3%; rating input score 59
- Program expense ratio: 72.7%; rating input score 73
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 88
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Limited
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 20.9%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.91; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 14.7%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -0.3% per year; rating input score 0; 11th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 59.3% of revenue deployed · 72.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $238K · 12 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes executive pay
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2011 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
- 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 59/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 26/100.