Woodruff Arts Center
Legal name: Robert W Woodruff Arts Center Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 580633971
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Atlanta, GA, US
- Phone
- (404) 733-4646
- Rating
- 73
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $135,063,732
- Expenses
- $121,159,118
- Assets
- $768,259,849
- Liabilities
- $190,373,530
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
145 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- HALA MODDELMOG (PRESIDENT & CEO)
- JENNIFER BARLAMENT (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR - ASO)
- MICHAEL SCHLEIFER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- RAND SUFFOLK (HIGH MUSEUM DIRECTOR): $830,208 total reported compensation
- HALA MODDELMOG (PRESIDENT & CEO): $583,839 total reported compensation
- JENNIFER BARLAMENT (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR - ASO): $504,468 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To connect the community with the arts through the Alliance Theatre, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and High Museum of Art.
What it reported doing in 2024
HIGH MUSEUM OF ART: Located in the heart of Atlanta, the High Museum of Art connects with audiences from across the Southeast and around the world through its distinguished collection, dynamic schedule of special exhibitions and engaging community-focused programs. Housed within facilities designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Richard Meier and Renzo Piano, the High features a collection of more than 20,000 works of art, including an extensive anthology of 19th- and 20th-century American fine and decorative arts; major holdings of photography and folk and self-taught work, especially that of artists from the American South; burgeoning collections of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, sculpture, new media and design; a growing collection of African art, with work dating from prehistory through the present; and significant holdings of European paintings and works on paper. The High is dedicated to reflecting the diversity of its communities and offering a variety of exhibitions and educational programs that engage visitors with the world of art, the lives of artists and the creative process.
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 most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 70
- Transparency & Controls: 62
- Accountability: 99
- Sustainability: 70
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 75.6%; rating input score 76
- Program expense ratio: 74%; rating input score 74
- Fundraising efficiency: $6.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 99.2%; rating input score 99; 54th 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: 10.3%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.34; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.25; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 5%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -0.9% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 0.7% per year; rating input score 100; 7th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 0.5% per year; rating input score 100; 9th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 75.6% of revenue deployed · 74% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 128 of 129 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $89.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $830K · 145 people listed · 6 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $8.2M reported
- Consistency: 37 of 37 current checks pass
- Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 17 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 6 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 17/100.