Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363302424
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Oak Park, IL, USA
Phone
7084453071
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$154,449
Expenses
$137,283
Assets
$1,125,992
Liabilities
$2,745

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

People named in this filing

  • John Berry (Chairman)
  • Keenan Johnston (Treasurer)
  • Chris Turner (Board Member)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

To foster an understanding of the life and works of Ernest Hemingway with particular emphasis on his Oak Park origins and impact on world literature

What it reported doing in 2025

The foundation operated the Ernest Hemingway birthplace home in Oak Park Illinois. The site was made available on a regularly scheduled basis to visitors and scholars interested in the life and writings of Ernest Hemingway. The foundation also maintained an archive of historical documents letters and held lectures and other cultural programs.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 63% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
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 - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and revenue has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 58
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 88
  • Sustainability: 66
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 60.7%; rating input score 61
  • Program expense ratio: 62%; rating input score 62
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.1 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.1%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.2; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 9.3% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.2% per year; rating input score 0; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.8% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 60.7% of revenue deployed · 62% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $85K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 58/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 47/100.