Science of Sport

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN: 463843390
IRS 990 coverage: 2015–2024
Forms available: Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2014, Form 990-N 2013
Location: Calabasas, CA, USA
Phone: 6025253197
Rating: 81
Verdict: STRONG
Rating confidence: Moderate
Sector: Youth Development Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue: $1,406,797
Expenses: $1,394,576
Assets: $58,321
Liabilities: $102,075

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

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

DAREN HEATON (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

DAREN HEATON (CEO): $145,615 total reported compensation
RICARDO VALERDI (FOUNDER AND CHIEF SCIENTIST): $57,692 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 bring math and science to life using sports examples. We develop stem curriculum and provide programming for schools, sports teams, foundations, governmental bodies, and community organizations throughout the country.

What it reported doing in 2024

During 2024, science of sport trained more than 500 elementary and middle school teachers, equipping them with the tools and resources needed to effectively teach stem concepts in both classroom and after-school settings. These efforts reached and impacted approximately 60,000 students from underserved communities.in addition, science of sport provided interactive summer and after-school camps for over 3,000 youth at various locations across the country. These programs were designed to address learning loss, strengthen stem skills, and enhance student confidence and engagement in science and math through the lens of sports.to further extend our impact, science of sport hosted multiple field trips and steam fairs, offering hands-on learning experiences for students during the school day and family-oriented community events. Across all programs, participants received stem kits, standards-aligned curriculum, student workbooks, and access to free online resources, reinforcing our mission to improve academic achievement, support social-emotional learning, and make stem education come alive through the power of sports.

Operating model

Revenue model: Earned-program. 87% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

Financial Efficiency: 77
Transparency & Controls: 92
Accountability: 86
Sustainability: 22
Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

Mission deployment rate: 86.7%; rating input score 87
Program expense ratio: 87.4%; rating input score 87
Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

Operating margin: 0.9%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.04; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.75; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
Officer compensation ratio: 14.6%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

Program expense growth: 13.2% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
Revenue growth: 15.6% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
Asset growth: -4.2% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Details

Where the money goes: 86.7% of revenue deployed · 87.4% of spending went to programs
Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.2M in reported program spending
Leadership: top reported pay $146K · 9 people listed
Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
Filing history: 9 filing years from 2015 to 2024
Contacts: How to reach this organization
Money network: 3 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.

Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 2/100.
Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 39/100.
High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 2/100.
High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.