Arts in the Armed Forces

Legal name: Arts in the Armed Forces Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
271409736
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2023
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2023, Form 990-EZ 2015, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Beverly Hills, CA, USA
Phone
6467372137
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Performing Arts Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$13,849
Expenses
$326,566
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LINDSAY MISERANDINO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • JOANNE TUCKER (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERICA NEWHOUSE (ARTISTIC DIRECTOR): $67,069 total reported compensation
  • LINDSAY MISERANDINO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $64,923 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Arts in the Armed Forces (AITAF) presents high-quality theatrical performances to active-duty military service members, veterans, and their families, using the arts to foster connection, reflection, and dialogue.

What it reported doing in 2023

Student veteran intern program: AITAF employs 3 student veterans per year (one per season) as part of its student veteran intern program, which engages each student in AITAF's work, offering pathways to employment, mentorship, and individial projects.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 98% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 81% 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

STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 4
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 60.4%; rating input score 60
  • Fundraising efficiency: $0.36 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th 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: 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2,258%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 40.4%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -3.6% per year; rating input score 0; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 14.3% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 5 programs and campaigns described on the official site
  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 60.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 2 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $197K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $67K · 4 people listed
  • Consistency: 23 of 23 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2018 to 2023
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 11/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 4/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 3/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 8/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: California registration: this organization is recorded as not currently operating in California.