Archaeological Institute of America

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
135669180
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Auburndale, MA, USA
Phone
8573059350
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Humanities Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,118,521
Expenses
$6,089,641
Assets
$19,442,540
Liabilities
$3,723,391

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

42 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ELIZABETH S GREENE (PRESIDENT)
  • BRIAN I DANIELS (FIRST VICE PRESIDENT)
  • LAETITIA LA FOLLETTE (PAST PRESIDENT)
  • KEVIN QUINLAN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • KEVIN QUINLAN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $241,941 total reported compensation
  • KEVIN MULLEN (DIR. OF MARKETING AND PROF. SERVICES): $154,328 total reported compensation
  • JARRETT A LOBELL (EDITOR IN CHIEF, ARCHAEOLOGY): $151,295 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The archaeological institute of america (aia) promotes archaeological inquiry and public understanding of the material record of the human past to foster an appreciation of the diverse cultures and our shared humanity. The aia supports archaeologists, their research and its dissemination, and the ethical practice of archaeology. The aia educates people of all ages about the significance or archaeological discovery and advocates for the preservation of the world's archaeological heritage.

What it reported doing in 2024

Site preservation: the institute's site preservation fund awards grants to aia member-sponsored applicants to assist with repairs, document endangered sites, enhance visitors' understanding, and/or help ensure the safety and security of the site. Our program focuses on grant giving, recognition and dissemination of best practices, advocacy, and public outreach.annual meeting: in january, thousands of archaeologists, philologists, students, archaeology enthusiasts, and archaeology magazine subscribers from the us, canada, and 35 other countries gather to participate in the aia-scs joint annual meeting. The 2025 meeting was held over four days in the first week of january in philadelphia. The program features academic sessions that present the latest research from the field, workshops, innovative site preservation strategies, and the latest discoveries; and presidential plenary sessions organized by aia and scs leadership. In addition to the academic sessions and workshops, the meeting hosts professional development sessions.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 65% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 94% 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 program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 72
  • Accountability: 89
  • Sustainability: 46
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 77.5%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.12 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Limited
    • Conducts field audits: Limited
    • May suspend future funding: Limited
    • Requires financial reports: Limited
    • Conducts site visits: Limited
    • Requires grant agreements: Limited
    • May require repayment: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 91.9%; rating input score 92; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 97.4%; rating input score 97; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.5%; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.19; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.7%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.2% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.1% per year; rating input score 100; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.6% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80% of revenue deployed · 77.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 37 of 38 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $4.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $242K · 42 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $793K reported
  • Consistency: 39 of 41 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 9/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 35/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.