Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
942427733
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Santa Cruz, CA, USA
Phone
8314206115
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Natural History, Natural Science Museums

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$18,018,138
Expenses
$1,767,854
Assets
$19,287,770
Liabilities
$112,334

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • LUCY LOGSDON (DIR OF OPERA): $120,700 total reported compensation
  • FELICIA VAN STOLK (EXECUTIVE DI): $115,426 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Connecting people with nature and science to inspire stewardship of the natural world.

What it reported doing in 2024

Our museum serves over 30,000 children and adults per year through a variety of programs designed to connect with the region's residents and visitors alike, such as: family programs including field trips, lectures, and festival; year-round series of lectures and field-based workshops with natural history experts; on-site docent-led school tours; and, field-based school programs. We also offer a variety of exhibits, such as permanent exhibits on the region's animals & habitats, geology, and cultural heritage and temporary exhibits which rotate two-three times each year. In addition, the museum maintains a collection of over 16,000 natural history specimens and cultural artifacts for study.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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 reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 33
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 86
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 6.6%; rating input score 7
  • Program expense ratio: 59.9%; rating input score 60
  • Fundraising efficiency: $70.86 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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; 66th 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: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 90.2%; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 10.91; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.4%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 12.1% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 37% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 30.6% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 6.6% of revenue deployed · 59.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $121K · 15 people listed
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.