Lawndale Art & Performance Center
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 760278775
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2009
- Location
- Houston, TX, USA
- Phone
- 7135285858
- Rating
- 74
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Performing Arts Centers
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $677,763
- Expenses
- $556,424
- Assets
- $2,145,611
- Liabilities
- $31,806
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
16 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Anna Walker (Executive Director)
Highest reported compensation
- Anna Walker (Executive Director): $94,560 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Lawndale is a multidisciplinary contemporary art center that engages Houston communities with exhibitions and programs that explore the aesthetic, critical, and social issues of our time.See Schedule O for continuation.For over 40 years, Lawndale has filled a vital need in Houston's art community as an incubator for exhibitions, performances, and conversations, encompassing many perspectives. Lawndale is committed to introducing audiences of all ages and backgrounds to multidisciplinary contemporary art and advancing the careers of artists living and working in Texas.
What it reported doing in 2024
The Artist Studio Program (ASP) exemplifies Lawndale's steadfast commitment to supporting the careers of visual artists in the Gulf Coast region. Since 2006, ASP has become a crucial hub for Houston's creative community, thanks to the steady pipeline of artists the residency attracts, many of whom had previously existed on the fringes. ASP invites three artists annually for a nine-month residency from September through May. Each resident artist receives a monthly stipend of $750 toward the cost of living, a $2,000 materials stipend for the creation of new work, 24-hour access to a private studio, and the institutional support of Lawndale, including regular studio visits with area artists, curators, and academics. See Schedule O for continuation.Each Spring, Lawndale mounts an exhibition of the residents' work produced during the residency term. Each resident artist leads individualized public programs with their exhibition to complement their artwork.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 58
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 84
- Sustainability: 68
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 56.9%; rating input score 57
- Program expense ratio: 69.2%; rating input score 69
- Fundraising efficiency: $7.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
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: 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: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 17.9%; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.86; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 17%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -0.1% per year; rating input score 0; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 56.9% of revenue deployed · 69.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $385K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $95K · 16 people listed
- Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
- 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: Mission deployment rate scored 57/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 28/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.