Cornelius Arts Community Center Dba Cain Center for the Arts

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
814628087
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2016
Location
Cornelius, NC, USA
Phone
9806893101
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,492,245
Expenses
$3,794,752
Assets
$26,183,983
Liabilities
$877,402

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

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jean Bock (President)
  • Zachary Toof (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Justin Dionne (Executive Dir.): $173,809 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Cain Center For the Arts' mission is to provide exceptional visual arts, performing arts, and social experiences to the Lake Norman region.

What it reported doing in 2024

During fiscal year 2025, Cain Center for the Arts curated 67 productions and hosted 39 performances for other organizations. More than 30,330 patrons attended these shows.10 exhibits were held showcasing 249 local and regional artists of all ages. Cain Centers Education Department oversaw 118 classes, camps, and workshops serving approximately 1,048 students in various disciplines such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sewing, and mixed media.With the support of donors, the community impact fund provided more than 260 affordable tickets, 66 summer camp scholarships, and 22 year-long music lessons. In collaboration with five community partners, Cain Center for the Arts participated in 3 "Arts in Community and 3 "Arts in Schools" 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 48
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.9%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 73.5%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $4.23 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: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • 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: -8.7%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.9; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.6%; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 33.1% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 25.6% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.9% of revenue deployed · 73.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $174K · 22 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 14/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 57/100.