Science Communication Lab Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
472404616
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2014
Location
Berkeley, CA, USA
Phone
4155481070
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Biological & Life Sciences

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,162,079
Expenses
$3,358,381
Assets
$2,826,713
Liabilities
$197,678

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

Leadership & pay

17 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • SARAH GOODWIN (EXECUTIVE DI): $231,860 total reported compensation
  • ELLIOT KIRSCHNER (EXECUTIVE PR): $229,866 total reported compensation
  • SHANNON BEHRMAN - SENIOR (DIRECTOR EDU): $174,191 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 science communication lab, formerly named ibiology, was incorporated on november 21, 2014, pursuant to the provisions of the general corporation law of the state of Delaware (section 102). The science communication lab's mission is to convey, in the form of open-access free videos, the excitement of modern biology and the process by which scientific discoveries are made. The organization's aim is to introduce the leading scientists in biology, how they think about scientific questions and conduct their research, and make known their personalities, opinions, and perspectives. The organization is innovating professional development of graduate students and postdocs through a series of courses that address experimental planning, design, and communication. Through their existing video content and a far-reaching project seeking to reimagine an introductory biology textbook, they also endeavor to support educators who want to incorporate materials that illustrate the process and practice

What it reported doing in 2024

Special initiatives in science communication special initiatives encompass science communication activities that fall outside the primary program categories. The current initiative, supported by a national geographic grant, brings the science of science communication to the national geographic explorers program - a community of creative science and environmental storytellers. To date, scl has delivered workshops at conferences and hosted webinars featuring experts in the field, including facilitated breakout sessions. Additional programs are planned to help explorers understand new ways to measure their impact and foster connections between them and science communication researchers. Explorer's guide to biology (xbio): educational materials for undergraduate students the mission of xbio is to create a free learning text and image-based resource that emphasizes the wonders of life and the problem-solving nature of science. Many students approach biology with initial excitement but leave their course discouraged after memorizing a sea of facts. Xbio's goal is to offer students a more exciting and accurate window into the life sciences through turning major discoveries into stories told by the scientists. In addition, we want to offer students a great learning experience for free, recognizing the financial burden imposed by textbook costs. As of july 1, 2023, xbio is a fiscally sponsored separate project.

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 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.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 95
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 83
  • Sustainability: 18
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 92.8%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: $39.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 77.8%; rating input score 78; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -55.3%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.84; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 41.7%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16.7% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.4% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.2% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 92.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $3.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $232K · 17 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $987K reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 2/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 31/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.