Marin Society of Artists
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 946069826
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2019
- Location
- San Rafael, CA, USA
- Phone
- 4155163218
- Rating
- 88
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Art Museums
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $256,996
- Expenses
- $306,356
- Assets
- $179,159
- Liabilities
- $10,160
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
8 people listed
People named in this filing
- MEG REILLY (TREASURER)
- JOHN HENRY (DIRECTOR)
- CAROL PONZIO (SECRETARY)
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
Public art center and studios providing instruction, lectures, tours, art exhibits and multi-disciplinary arts & enrichment activities. Msa supports artists of multiple disciplines at all stages of development, and fosters activities that encourage the general public & under-served communities to explore and incorporate the arts in their lives.
What it reported doing in 2024
Operated a community art center providing physical space and virtual presence for diverse arts activities including classes, poetry readings, classical music, theatre rehearsal, and art exhibitions. Provided 17 artist studio space. Sponsored 12 art exhibitions, monthly art critiques and ongoing painting activities. Participated in downtown san rafael arts district (dsrad) public art programs, in downtown locations and at the art centre. Worked with dsrad managing stakeholders to allocate $671,000, in state funding for arts & cultural activities in/near downtown san rafael. Partnered with canal alliance and other organizations through the canal arts (tca) bringing art and family arts activities to a disadvantaged immigrant community. Worked with the city of san rafael to develop procedures to facilitate public art on private property and eliminating onerous fees and approval processes. Worked with city of san rafael, the canal arts, immigrant artists, indigenous people representatives and voces del canal community to design and install a public mural project at the al boro community center in the canal neighborhood, and 2 murals at san pedro elementary school (80% are students of color &/or of immigrant families) and 2 murals at the new canal alliance building. Installed a "tiny art library" allowing the community to take and leave art related items. Installed a 6-panel mural at the msa art center. Commenced work with tca and the city of san rafael to research and design interactive "people of the canal" installation along 2 miles of bayside trail in the canal neighborhood, depicting the interrelationship of people and the natural world there since the beginning of time.
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 expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 95
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 82
- Sustainability: 27
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 87.6%; rating input score 88
- Fundraising efficiency: $228.37 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 92; 92nd 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: 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: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- 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: -19.2%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.58; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 11.3% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 87.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $268K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 8 people listed
- Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 6 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 15/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 28/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.