Orchestra Lumos Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
066100039
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Stamford, CT, USA
Phone
2033251407
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Symphony Orchestras

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,775,187
Expenses
$2,387,234
Assets
$3,131,659
Liabilities
$215,755

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

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • RUSSELL JONES (PRESIDENT & CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • RUSSELL JONES (PRESIDENT & CEO): $171,360 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 mission of orchestra lumos is to bring the transformational impact of great music to our audience through passionate, professional performances of the highest caliber, diverse and innovative programming, and inspiring educational initiatives. The orchestra presents a

What it reported doing in 2024

Orchestra lumos is deeply committed to offering a broad range of opportunities to enrich the lives of all members of our community through participation in our programs. Our music education activities encourage young people to explore, appreciate, perform, and create music. Free concerts in community venues enable us to reach a broad and diverse cross-section of fairfield county residents. The orchestra continues to build its five-year strategic plan that will significantly expand the reach of our education activities, with a goal of reaching a broader and more diverse cross-section of our communitys youth. Existing and new partnerships help expand our work in finding creative opportunities for students in both school and community settings. Highlights of our education and community activities include: public school partnerships; our collaborations with stamford public schools remains strong, and we also developed new partnerships with other school districts in fairfield county. Bootcamps in darien public schools for elementary, middle, and high school students, presented by orchestra lumos musicians, to help individual students with their skills and technique. The unique series, a four-concert series for students with special needs in stamford public schools, offered in partnership with concordia conservatory. Youth music organizations in addition to our in-school activities, orchestra lumos has had the opportunity to collaborate with several of the youth music organizations in our area that work with students whose families dont have the resources for private music lessons or ensemble experiences. These partners include project music, whose mission is to use the transformative power of music to effect positive social change for the students most in need of access, opportunity, and inspiration. This season, our musicians offered both private instruction to individual students and masterclasses for small groups of beginning and advanced students. These activities, along with complimentary tickets to orchestra lumos concerts at the palace theatre reached over 150 project music students and families.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 65% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 82.2%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.52 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • 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: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -34.5%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.31; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.2%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.4% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 82.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $171K · 22 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 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: 3 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 36/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 5/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: CEO compensation review process not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.