Friends of the Greenhouse Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371794863
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Schenectady, NY, USA
Phone
5183825801
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Reported finances

Revenue
$41,488
Expenses
$21,080
Assets
$82,200

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Janet Given Chen (President)
  • Kathryn Harter (Vice President)

People named in this filing

  • Janet Given Chen (President)
  • Kathryn Harter (Vice President)
  • Margaret Brown (Secretary)

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

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

Overview

Mission

To assist and support the maintenance, development and promotion of the Schenectady Central Park Greenhouse complex; to preserve the historic integrity of the Charles Steinmetz Greenhouse; and to support the City of Schenectady in providing the public with the highest quality plant care complex for the benefit of residents of the City and County of Schenectady and others who use this facility.

What it reported doing in 2025

In 2025, Friends of the Greenhouse Inc. continued its efforts to support the maintenance, development and promotion of the Schenectady Central Park Greenhouse complex and to provide the public with the highest quality plant care complex for the benefit of residents of the City and County of Schenectady and others who use this facility. There were a raffle sale as the only fundraising event, along with a year end donation appeal.There was ongoing work towards the construction of a teaching greenhouse which was completed in 2025, involving final electrical work and the installation of minor equipment. Additional small projects were completed to benefit the overall complex, as well as replacing the 40 year old boiler system with a new unit for $14,600 as part of a $25,000 capital projects grant received.

Operating model

Revenue model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent revenue detail to tell how this nonprofit funds its work.
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 a large share of total spending goes to programs. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 61
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Sustainability: 72
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 44.8%; rating input score 45
  • Program expense ratio: 88.1%; rating input score 88

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 49.2%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.9; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.9% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 12.5% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 44.8% of revenue deployed · 88.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 1 filed program accomplishment · $19K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 6 of 6 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 45/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.