Hillsborough Arts Council

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
562163979
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2017, Form 990-N 2007
Location
Hillsborough, NC, USA
Phone
(919) 643-2500
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Visual Arts Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$285,456
Expenses
$282,564
Assets
$84,989
Liabilities
$12,331

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

People named in this filing

  • KATHY HUPP (DIRECTOR)
  • ARISA KUSUMI SULLIVAN (DIRECTOR)
  • JEN STONE (DIRECTOR)

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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Hillsborough Arts Council advocates for local artists and provides access to inclusive community arts programming in Hillsborough, NC.

What it reported doing in 2024

Hac served over 19,000 event participants through free community arts events in hillsborough, nc. Each month, hac organized last fridays & the art walk, showcasing art markets, gallery exhibitions, live performances, and special happenings in downtown and west hillsborough. In december, hac hosted the solstice lantern walk & market, featuring live entertainment, an art market, and a large community procession through river park by lantern light. Each of these events provided opportunities for local artists to earn an income and supported the local business economy. Hac events attracted an average of 60% of participants from outside hillsborough, driving tourism downtown.

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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 91
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 99.8%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 86.5%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $18.24 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 55; 55th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: 1%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.3; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.15; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 12.2% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.4% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 7 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 99.8% of revenue deployed · 86.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $245K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2016 to 2024
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 55/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 42/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 16/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 23/100.