La Jolla Institute for Immunology

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
330328688
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
La Jolla, CA, USA
Phone
+1 (858) 752-6500
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$84,154,783
Expenses
$86,007,343
Assets
$62,503,266
Liabilities
$34,989,684

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

Leadership & pay

35 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ERICA SAPHIRE (PRESIDENT & CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERICA SAPHIRE (PRESIDENT & CEO): $897,346 total reported compensation
  • ALESSANDRO SETTE (DIVISION HEAD/CENTER HEAD/PROF): $701,760 total reported compensation
  • SHANE CROTTY (CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER): $507,560 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To advance the fight against disease through immunology research.

What it reported doing in 2024

The la jolla institute for immunology ("lji") is a private, nonprofit medical research organization that is recognized as a world leader in comprehensive research dedicated to understanding the intricacies and power of the immune system and applying that knowledge toward its goal of life without disease.the institute is home to 21 independent laboratories, each operated bya leading scientist handpicked for their creativity and pioneeringspirit. Each of these labs is dedicated to understanding thefar-reaching influence of the immune system and to train the nextgeneration of scientists, to promote human health and prevent a wide range of diseases.

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 85% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 22
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 90.1%; rating input score 90
  • Program expense ratio: 87.6%; rating input score 88
  • Fundraising efficiency: $41.91 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 40th 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: -2.2%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.73; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.56; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.1%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.7% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 90.1% of revenue deployed · 87.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 22 of 24 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $75.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $897K · 35 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $638K reported
  • Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 48 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 37 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 7 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 29/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.