Children's Museum and Theatre of Maine

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
010352258
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Portland, ME, USA
Phone
2078281234
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Children's Museums

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,224,605
Expenses
$4,713,313
Assets
$14,237,046
Liabilities
$1,863,278

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

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • GAIL RINGEL (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JULIE BUTCHER PEZZINO (EXECUTIVE DI): $140,570 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

At the children's museum & theatre of Maine, we set the stage for every child to imagine and learn through play.

What it reported doing in 2024

Everyone belongs at the children's museum & theatre of Maine. We believe each person has value and worth; we celebrate what makes each of us unique and what binds us together as a strong community. We center community in all we do. We strive to be an inclusive partner and resource in order to build strong, lasting relationships. We provide safe, inclusive experiences and spaces to ensure that the community's trust is earned and upheld in all that we do. We embrace the power of play to build resilience, spark creativity, and ignite a child's imagination. Play inspires our work, our physical spaces, our storytelling, and our learning experiences. We believe curiosity inspires children to explore, build empathy, and connect with others. Learning fueled by curiosity leads to a deeper understanding of self and the world around us. Visitor engagement - over 200,000 visitors come to the museum on an annual basis. The visitor engagement department provides for a safe and clean building in which to present educational exhibits and 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

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 57
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 42
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 63.9%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 57%; rating input score 57
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.64 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 20; 20th 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 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -11.6%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.02; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.3% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.3% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.9% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 63.9% of revenue deployed · 57% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $141K · 22 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 57/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 12/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 53/100.