Robert R. McCormick Foundation
Legal name: Robert R Mccormick Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 363689171
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2020–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Chicago, IL, US
- Phone
- 312.445.5000
- Rating
- 88
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Philanthropy, Voluntarism, and Grantmaking Foundations N.E.C.
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $105,305,792
- Expenses
- $114,636,034
- Assets
- $1,752,906,507
- Liabilities
- $47,212,644
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
16 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- TIMOTHY KNIGHT (PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
Highest reported compensation
- TIMOTHY KNIGHT (PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $868,623 total reported compensation
- CARLA BEAL (CIO & TREASURER): $633,360 total reported compensation
- ANDRES TORRES (VP-STRATEGY, PLANNING & OPS./SEC.): $359,530 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Provides grants and program support to organizations building thriving communities. Help Chicago Communities Thrive Support the Robert R. McCormick Foundation’s Communities Fund and provide hope and opportunity for fellow Chicagoans who face daily challenges most of us never experience. 100% of your donation, plus the Foundation’s 50% match, goes directly to local nonprofits working with children and families in Englewood and Little Village, two communities where there is both great need and great potential. Support the Robert R. 100% of your donation, plus the Foundation’s 50% match, goes directly to local nonprofits working with children and families in Englewood and Little Village, two communities where there is both great need and...
What it reported doing in 2024
The foundation makes grants to advance educational attainment and economic prosperity in local communities. The foundation works to improve early childhood education; augment investigative journalism and government accountability; and support military service members, veterans, and their families.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Investment-supported. 60% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 96% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 98
- Transparency & Controls: 70
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 48
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 96.8%; rating input score 97
- Fundraising efficiency: $202.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: 99.9%; rating input score 100; 48th 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; 77th 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: -8.9%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 15.29; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.6%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 21.1% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 96.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $111M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $869K · 16 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $909K reported
- Consistency: 37 of 37 current checks pass
- Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 4 filing years from 2020 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 271 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 256 filed related-organization links
- 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 9/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 45/100.