ExpERIEnce Children's Museum

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
251693861
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Erie, PA, USA
Phone
8144533743
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Children's Museums

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,648,326
Expenses
$2,351,811
Assets
$18,453,772
Liabilities
$252,552

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jenna Bickford (President)
  • Karinna Vernaza (Vice President)
  • Ainslie Brosig (Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • Ainslie Brosig (Executive Director): $94,040 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 enrich the lives of children by providing an educational, creative, interactive and safe environment where learning and fun go hand in hand.

What it reported doing in 2024

The Museum offers interactive, educational exhibits to more than 35,000 attendees annually, and strives to keep the gallery floors dynamic with new and exciting experiences. The museum enhances the exhibit experience with dynamic programming, regularly offering new educational and creative activities like movement and dance, seasonal arts and crafts, literary activities in the Creativity Center, creative paper making, story times, etc.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 87% 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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 28
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 88
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 13.2%; rating input score 13
  • Program expense ratio: 36.7%; rating input score 37
  • Fundraising efficiency: $45.05 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 17th 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • 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: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 64.6%; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.85; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4%; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 25.7% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11.2% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 29.6% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 13.2% of revenue deployed · 36.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $864K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $94K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 28 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2019 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 37/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Audit committee oversight not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.