National Nordic Museum

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
911107537
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone
2067895707
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Art Museums

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,865,407
Expenses
$7,454,335
Assets
$47,889,472
Liabilities
$521,902

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

Leadership & pay

35 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JAY BRUNS III (PRESIDENT)
  • MONICA LANGFELDT (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • ERIC NELSON (CEO (THRU 09/2024))
  • LATH CARLSON (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERIC NELSON (CEO (THRU 09/2024)): $459,282 total reported compensation
  • ANDREA MILLIKAN (COO): $193,497 total reported compensation
  • LESLIE ANDERSON (CHIEF CURATOR): $129,112 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 national nordic museum shares nordic culture, values and ideas with people of all ages and backgrounds to create connections, generate dialogue, and inspire new perspectives.

What it reported doing in 2024

The national nordic museum was founded for the purpose of collecting, preserving, protecting and exhibiting objects that reflect the life and culture of people from nordic countries while inspiring conversation on modern nordic trends. Founded in 1980, the national nordic museum is the largest museum in the united states to honor the legacy of immigrants from the five nordic countries: denmark, finland, iceland, norway, and sweden.

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

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 95
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 40
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 95.4%; rating input score 95
  • Program expense ratio: 70.7%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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: -27.1%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.42; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.8%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15.8% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.4% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 95.4% of revenue deployed · 70.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 29 of 29 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $5.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $459K · 35 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 5/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.