Children's Oncology Services of Massachusetts Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042627411
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Brookline, MA, USA
Phone
6177343333
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Cancer

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,992,760
Expenses
$1,187,523
Assets
$8,713,978
Liabilities
$77,029

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARGARET E MALUMPHY (PRESIDENT)
  • RALPH NERETTE (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DAWN EMERMAN (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • MIKE EMERMAN (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JULIA WALKUP (DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT): $149,147 total reported compensation
  • DAWN EMERMAN (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $136,654 total reported compensation
  • MIKE EMERMAN (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $117,427 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Since 1979, children's oncology services (formerly the boston ronald mcdonald house) has served as a home away from home for children with cancer and their families. As an essential part of their overall care, the house provides its guests with no-cost and convenient accomodations in a safe and comfortable home-like setting. Here, children, families and caregivers find comfort and support among staff, volunteers and other families facing the life-changing realities of childhood cancer and other life-threatening hematological illnesses.

What it reported doing in 2025

Children's oncology services (formerly the boston ronald mcdonald house), located in brookline, Massachusetts provides a home away from home for children with cancer and their families. The facility, serving up to 22 families per night, includes the following: a 125-year-old victorian house with 9 bedrooms, a kitchen, dining and living rooms, computer room, playroom, game room, and laundry facilities; and a carriage house and annex with 13 studio apartments - the first of their kind in the country - that provide a relatively germ-free home for young patients recovering from bone marrow or stem cell transplants. The house also provides familites with parking, an outdoor patio, picnic area, and playground.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 76% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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 available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 55
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 54.8%; rating input score 55
  • Program expense ratio: 66.2%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.54 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 18; 18th 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: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 28th 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: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 40.4%; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.34; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 34%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.6% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.9% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 54.8% of revenue deployed · 66.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 17 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $786K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $149K · 20 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 6/100.