Museum of Latin American Art

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
330786070
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2020
Location
Long Beach, CA, USA
Phone
5624371689
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Museum, Museum Activities

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,595,143
Expenses
$6,887,150
Assets
$39,604,821
Liabilities
$513,400

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

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LOURDES RAMOS-RIVAS (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • LOURDES RAMOS-RIVAS (CEO): $341,250 total reported compensation
  • CEDRIC WOOLFORK (CFO/COO): $179,256 total reported compensation
  • JENNIFER CARR (VP OF DEVELOPMENT): $175,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The specific purpose of this corporation is to: expand knowledge and appreciation of modern and contemporary latin american tine art that has been created since world war ii; to operate a museum; to collect and display latin american contemporary art; to provide education and research services regarding modern and contemporary latin american tine art.

What it reported doing in 2024

Exhibitions: in 2024, the museum of latin american art (molaa) organized five major exhibitions, welcoming over 65,000 visitors. Key exhibitions included artenica: art, science, and technology in latin america today, a getty-supported show highlighting pioneering and contemporary latin american digital artists; and the endless spiral by betsabe romero, an exhibition presented as a collateral event at the 60th venice biennale exploring themes of migration and displacement. Cross-border women by alejandra phelts focuses on everyday experiences that link intimacy, affective relationships, and attitudes of female empowerment. Another major exhibition, vermillion like embers by indigenous brazilian artist andrey guaian zignnatto, explored memory, ancestral knowledge, and resistance through sculptural installations rooted in native traditions and urban experiences. Importantly, the curatorial team worked to continue the growth of its permanent collection of over 1,600 works.by showcasing both historical and contemporary voices, molaa fosters greater global understanding of the region's cultural richness, complexity, and ongoing contributions to the world of art.

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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 64.4%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: $4.46 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 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: -91.6%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.75; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 18.6%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -3.8% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 0.7% per year; rating input score 100; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 64.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $4.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $341K · 24 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $908K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 15/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.