Big East Conference Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 900955035
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2013–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Jul 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- New York, NY, USA
- Phone
- 6466633445
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Private Grantmaking Foundations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $93,822,662
- Expenses
- $90,742,727
- Assets
- $39,498,090
- Liabilities
- $7,167,987
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
20 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VALERIE B ACKERMAN (COMMISSIONER, PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- VALERIE B ACKERMAN (COMMISSIONER, PRESIDENT): $2,001,925 total reported compensation
- Vince Nicastro (COO, Deputy Commissioner): $618,454 total reported compensation
- DANIEL LEIBOVITZ (Sr. Assoc Comm. MEN'S BB): $450,484 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
See schedule o for description of mission.
What it reported doing in 2024
To provide its members with a jointly governed body for sponsoring, supervising and regulating intercollegiate athletics as a conference member of the national collegiate athletic association "ncaa", in accordance with the principles, policies, constitution and bylaws of the ncaa; to assist its members in funding and promoting their intercollegiate athletics programs; enhance the opportunities for participation in, and the level of competition of, men's and women's intercollegiate athletics on an equitable basis; effectuate such other or additional purposes as may, from time to time, be adopted by the conference; and take any and all actions necessary to effectuate the above purposes.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 98% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 73% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 84
- Transparency & Controls: 79
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 38
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 92.4%; rating input score 92
- Program expense ratio: 97.8%; rating input score 98
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 51st 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; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 3.3%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.44; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 4.8%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 7.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 8.8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: Mission, programs, and operating context captured from the official website.
- Where the money goes: 92.4% of revenue deployed · 97.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $88.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $2M · 20 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $4.8M reported
- Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 19 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 11 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 — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 15/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 49/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.