Call of the Sea
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 942951488
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2015–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Sausalito, CA, USA
- Phone
- 4153313214
- Rating
- 86
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Youth Development Programs
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,311,109
- Expenses
- $1,880,234
- Assets
- $5,615,599
- Liabilities
- $462,211
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
19 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- MARK WELTHER (CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- MICHAEL DELANEY-ED (Executive Dir.): $77,539 total reported compensation
- CARLA THORSON (Executive Dir.): $29,596 total reported compensation
- MARK WELTHER (CEO): $17,930 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To inspire people of all ages and backgrounds to connect with the sea and its tributaries through educational programs abroad traditional sailing vessels that focus on the marine sciences, nautical heritage, the ocean environment and careers in the maritime profession. Our youth-oriented sail training programs are designed to build self confidence, self awareness, discipline and the teamwork and leadership skill inherent in being part of the ships' crews.
What it reported doing in 2024
Call of the sea offers on-the-water environmental education programs on a 132' educational vessel - brigantine matthew turner and an82" educational vessel - schooner seaward. Students benefit by participating in a series of local bay environmental, seamanship and maritime history programs. Over 4,000 students annually participate in call of the sea's educational programs.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
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: 82
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 35
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 75.6%; rating input score 76
- Fundraising efficiency: $4.33 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 14; 14th 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: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- 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: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -43.4%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.99; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.08; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 6.7%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 11.5% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 75.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $78K · 19 people listed
- Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
- 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.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 14/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 4/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 48/100.