Portland Maine Symphony Orchestra
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 016006058
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Portland, ME, USA
- Phone
- 2077736128
- Rating
- 75
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Symphony Orchestras
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $5,525,052
- Expenses
- $5,690,781
- Assets
- $16,876,482
- Liabilities
- $570,013
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
26 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VICKI GORDAN (PRESIDENT EL)
Highest reported compensation
- ECKART PREU (MUSIC DIRECT): $171,797 total reported compensation
- CAROLYN NISHON THRU 73125 (EXECUTIVE DI): $143,345 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 portland symphony orchestra (pso) serves our community by enriching lives through music. The pso strives for the highest possible level of artistic quality; inspires children and adults through music education and encourages lifelong musical learning; develops and nurtures community relationships that are mutually beneficial; and promotes a culture of mutual respect that builds shared commitment and collaboration.
What it reported doing in 2024
The portland symphony orchestra, chartered in 1932, is Maine's largest professional orchestra with an annual budget of 5.6 million for its 100th anniversary season. During the 2024-2025 season, the symphony remained connected to audiences by both offering live performances as well as digitally offering two concerts recorded at merrill auditorium. Performances include a gala, 8 classical, 4 pops, 3 discovery family concerts, 1 youth concert, the magic of christmas concert series, multiple school lessons, kinderkonzerts, and a 2-concert summer series in old orchard seaside pavilion.
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 - 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: 64
- Transparency & Controls: 74
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 47
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 72.7%; rating input score 73
- Program expense ratio: 64.6%; rating input score 65
- Fundraising efficiency: $4.3 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 14; 14th 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: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- 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: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- 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: -3%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.97; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 5.5%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2.6% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 72.7% of revenue deployed · 64.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 24 of 24 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $172K · 26 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $150K reported
- Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 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.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 14/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 24/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 50/100.