Pittsburgh Glass Center Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
251814656
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2025
Location
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Phone
4123652145
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Visual Arts Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,720,303
Expenses
$4,077,417
Assets
$20,181,634
Liabilities
$8,367,510

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ANNABELLE JAVIER (PRESIDENT)
  • PAULA JERNIGAN (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • HEATHER MCELWEE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • REBECCA MCNEIL (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $120,383 total reported compensation
  • HEATHER MCELWEE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $113,751 total reported compensation
  • SANDRA BACCHI (SECRETARY): $4,668 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Glass art: we teach it. We create it. We promote it. We support those who make it. Pittsburgh glass center (pgc) cultivates an inclusive and welcoming environment that encourages everyone, from the casually curious to the master artist, to learn, create, and be inspired by glass. We share our passion for glass locally and globally to advance a more diverse, vibrant, and accessible glass art community.

What it reported doing in 2025

Classes and workshops: workshops and classes are given in each of our four studios: the flame shop, hot shop, casting studio and cold shop.pittsburgh glass center classes range from short 20 minute experiences called "make it now," to multi-day workshops, to eight-week classes during the fall, winter, and spring, and twelve weeks of one-week summer intensive classes. The fall, winter, and spring classes and workshops pull students mainly from allegheny and surrounding counties. Each semester carnegie mellon university enrolls over 40 students to participate in our eight-week session of classes. During the summer our master classes draw students from around the world. Participants have come from over 40 states and 12 foreign countries. Pittsburgh glass center offers classes and workshops for both adults and teens and has recently been expanding teen programming to include a variety of offerings for students ages 14-18. Classes offered both at the pittsburgh glass center as well as through residency programs that take glass art into the classroom.

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

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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 58
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 70
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 52.7%; rating input score 53
  • Program expense ratio: 69.7%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $14.99 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 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: 28.7%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.95; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.41; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.9%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 17.4% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 52.7% of revenue deployed · 69.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 23 of 23 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $120K · 25 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $977K reported
  • Consistency: 39 of 39 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 53/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 50/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 20/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 51/100.