Lucy Parsons Institute for Social Research
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 842568571
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2024–2025
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2023
- Location
- Minneapolis, MN, US
- Phone
- 612-477-5807
- Rating
- 66
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Social Science
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $583,525
- Expenses
- $283,183
- Assets
- $732,141
- Liabilities
- $228,907
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
4 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- Michael Kelly (Secretary): $43,468 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The purpose of the Lucy Parsons Institute for Social Research is to investigate and evaluate the conditions, relationships, and dynamics of our society based on understanding the value of labor and the ownership of the means of production. We hope to positively impact labor and social movements through education and organizing. We will host meetings and workshops, as well as present papers and proposals, at conferences and forums, to impact public opinion on important issues and matters of the day.
What it reported doing in 2025
Community Center for Grassroots Organizations: In 2024, the organization purchased a building, three-quarters of which is dedicated to serve as a meeting and event space for grassroots organizations in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area of Minnesota. In the 2025 calendar year, the space was used to host more than 200 meetings of about 20 people and around 50 larger events with attendance of 100 or more people. The events included community education panels, diaper drives for single mothers in need, back-to-school supplies drives for students, know-your-rights trainings, cultural performances and other similar events. Depending on the financial resources of the grassroots organizations, the space is either offered free of charge or a flat fee of $50 for up to 3 hours use of the main hall, which is 1200 sq ft, which is well below market rate.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 42
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Accountability: 54
- Sustainability: 69
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 28.5%; rating input score 29
- Program expense ratio: 57.9%; rating input score 58
- Fundraising efficiency: $25.85 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 62; 62nd 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: 75%; rating input score 75; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Missing
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 51.5%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.59; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 15.3%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 67.4% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 75.2% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 70.1% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 5 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 28.5% of revenue deployed · 57.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 3 of 4 board members independent · 2 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $164K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $43K · 4 people listed
- Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 2 filing years from 2024 to 2025
- 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.
Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 29/100.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 58/100.
- High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 19/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.
- High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.