Explorocean

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
953867036
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2014
Forms available
Form 990 2014
Location
Newport Beach, CA, USA
Phone
9496758915
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
History Museums

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,153,878
Expenses
$1,584,624
Assets
$18,310,138
Liabilities
$6,005,867

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • TOM POLLACK (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • TOM POLLACK (CEO): $160,000 total reported compensation
  • WENDY MARSHALL (DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION): $119,333 total reported compensation
  • DAVE LUGO (COO): $116,292 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Explorocean inspires, educates and engages the explorer within us through interactive experiences centered on the principles of ocean literacy.

What it reported doing in 2014

Learning spacesour ocean literacy center features dozens of hands-on learning experiences for children to make their own discoveries about the ocean. Our innovation lab allows k-12 chldren to make projects and we provide the time, tools and space for them to do so. Children can design and build as underwater robots and learn to use 3d printers and write computer code. Our outdoor science patio is used by thousands of children on field trips during the school year to conduct hands-on experiments with age appropriate tools and supplies.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 83% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Revenue has declined or grown slowly and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 33
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 75.7%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $21.71 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: 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: -37.3%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 11.55; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.33; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 25%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: -15% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -4.6% per year; rating input score 0; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 75.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $160K · 10 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2009 to 2014
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 filed related-organization links
  • 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 — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 8/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 30/100.