John L Severance

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
346506884
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Brooklyn, OH, USA
Phone
2168134556
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,728,609
Expenses
$4,668,299
Assets
$62,320,777
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

2 people listed

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

Overview

Mission

Grants are made according to the last will and testament ofjohn l severence dated january 31, 1935 in conjunction with the trust agreement dated december 23, 1915 and the operating agreement dated april 30, 2009. In compliance with the trust document, keybank as trustee, makes grants to the cleveland museum of art to be used to purchase works of art. Under the Ohio institutional trust funds act of 1999, the beneficiary has chosen to receive the maximum of income based on the greater of 5% of afv or traditional income.keybank maintains a responsiveness to the needs and activities of thebeneficiaries organization in the attainment of its mission. Please note the charity has a right to direct or approve investments and thetrustee has the authority to amend the document to insure thecontinuation to qualify as a 509(a)(3).

What it reported doing in 2025

Grants made to the cleveland museum of art to be used in the purchase of works of art.

Operating model

Revenue model
Investment-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 93
  • Accountability: 12
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90.9%; rating input score 91
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • 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: -71.1%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 13.35; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 1 board members independent · 2 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $421K · 2 people listed
  • Consistency: 15 of 15 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes grants
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2019 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 36/100.