Nau Center for Texas Cultural Heritage Co Houston First Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
453582480
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2015
Forms available
Form 990 2015, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Houston, TX, USA
Phone
7138538037
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Cultural, Ethnic Awareness

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,783,085
Expenses
$1,772,556
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2015. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

People named in this filing

  • John L Nau III (Chairman)
  • Brady F Carruth (Treasurer)
  • Fred C Burns (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 2015. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Nau Center for Texas Cultural Heritage will be an educational and inspirational venue where visitors will be invited to explore and experience the history and culture that built and continues to define this city, region and state.

What it reported doing in 2015

Project development, construction and fundraising was indefinitely suspended in March 2015. Contributions were returned to donors ($7,042,258 in cash and $21,517,654 in cancelled pledges receivable), capitalized project costs in the amount of $8,372,370 were written off, and the Center's corporate status was dissolved in September 2015.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 37
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 57
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 17.3%; rating input score 17
  • Program expense ratio: 56.4%; rating input score 56
  • Fundraising efficiency: $58.58 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 69.3%; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 142.9% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -14.2% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -50% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 17.3% of revenue deployed · 56.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 12 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2M reported
  • Consistency: 19 of 19 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2013 to 2015
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 17/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 56/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.