Bernice a Russell Community Development Corporation Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 651013568
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2015
- Location
- Punta Gorda, FL, USA
- Phone
- 9415757518
- Rating
- 65
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Historical Societies, Related Historical Activities
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $332,851
- Expenses
- $223,167
- Assets
- $2,126,999
- Liabilities
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
5 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Jaha Cummings (President)
- Martha Bireda (Executive Director)
People named in this filing
- Jaha Cummings (President)
- Martha Bireda (Executive Director)
- Bruce Neilson (Director)
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
BARCDC operates the Blanchard House Museum an educational institution dedicated to collecting preserving studying and exhibiting materials concerning the history culture and contributions of African Americans in Charlotte County and Southwest Florida. The museum is identified by the organization as a charter member of the Smithsonians National Museum of African American History and Culture and is a member of the Florida African American Heritage Preservation Network. Through museum exhibitions lectures educational programs historic-property preservation heritage-tourism initiatives affordable housing and community-development activities BARCDC preserves regional history and promotes cultural and economic revitalization.
What it reported doing in 2025
BARCDC conducted charitable activities in three principal areas: historic preservation affordable housing and economic revitalization and development. Historic-preservation activities included operating and preserving the Blanchard House Museum maintaining historical and library collections providing educational and cultural programs and interpreting African American history in Charlotte County. Affordable-housing activities included operating an eight-unit apartment building providing affordable rental housing. Economic-development activities included relocating and renovating an additional historic house situated on land owned by BARCDC for future expansion of charitable and cultural programming. The expansion project remained under construction and was not ready for its intended use at December 31 2025
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 72% 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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 32
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 88
- Sustainability: 82
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 30.5%; rating input score 30
- Program expense ratio: 45.4%; rating input score 45
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- 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: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- 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: 33%; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 9.53; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: Limited
- Revenue growth: 12% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 4.7% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 30.5% of revenue deployed · 45.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $101K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
- Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 2 filing years from 2010 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 30/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 45/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.