Heritage Square Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
860378502
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Phoenix, AZ, USA
Phone
6026995994
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
History Museums

Reported finances

Revenue
$484,455
Expenses
$481,528
Assets
$198,891
Liabilities
$281,051

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Kari Carlisle (Executive Director)
  • Tobias Hogan (President)
  • Kevin Lozier (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Kari Carlisle (Executive Director): $66,060 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Cultivating meaningful connections rooted in Phoenix history and our community to inspire personal growth through shared memorable experiences.

What it reported doing in 2024

Tours and Exhibits: We offered standard and specialty tours of the Rosson House and outdoor tours serving 10,264 visitors and generating $40,535 in admissions revenue. We presented permanent and pop-up exhibits in the museum, visitor center, and community events, expanding historical engagement. Programs and Events: Our annual theme explored science fiction, attracting 4,991 attendees. School field trips and traveling trunks reached 633 students. Community Engagement: We participated in Blue Star Museums, Museums For All, two free community festivals and Teacher Appreciation Week serving 132 individuals. We also participated in national Museum Social Impact Study.City-facilitated events, event rentals, and tenant activities further activiated Heritage Square, drawing thousands more visitors. We are grateful to our supporters for helping us communicate history, foster connections, and create an inclusive cultural space in downtown Phoenix.

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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 29
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 73.6%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 73.4%; rating input score 73
  • Fundraising efficiency: $16.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 53; 53rd 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: 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.6%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.41; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.41; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.7%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.6% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 73.6% of revenue deployed · 73.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $354K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $66K · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 53/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 41/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 3/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.