Pollen Midwest
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 463868459
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2016–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Minneapolis, MN, USA
- Phone
- 6517248341
- Rating
- 67
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Human Service Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $129,414
- Expenses
- $147,403
- Assets
- $0
- Liabilities
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
2 people listed
People named in this filing
- Lisa Middag (Treasurer)
- Lolyann Connor (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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Pollen is a media arts organization that fosters empathy, encourages connection across differences, and inspires meaningful action by sharing stories of individuals who want to change our collective story for the better. Through our narrative experiences, Pollen grows a network of Pollenites who have an unwavering belief in equity, empathy, and our shared humanity. Our social enterprise, Pollen Studio, brings our narrative expertise to mission-driven organizations looking to tell their stories in new and engaging ways. Success will be found in the sum of all the connections and actions made by these organizations and by Pollenites, inspired by the platform, the space, and the hive that Pollen creates.
What it reported doing in 2024
Program Studio - A creative agency for mission-driven organizations, the purpose of which is to create a more just and vibrant future through social impact storytelling and engagement strategies.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 69% 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
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: 47
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 88
- Sustainability: 17
- Growth: 40
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 53%; rating input score 53
- Program expense ratio: 46.5%; rating input score 46
- Fundraising efficiency: $4.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -13.9%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 1.1% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -3.1% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -10.9% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 53% of revenue deployed · 46.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 2 of 2 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $68K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 2 people listed
- Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 8 filing years from 2016 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 46/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 21/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 19/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.