Terc Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
046134355
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Cambridge, MA, USA
Phone
6178739600
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Engineering and Technology

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$14,400,977
Expenses
$16,336,781
Assets
$20,868,750
Liabilities
$4,318,932

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LAURIE BRENNAN (PRESIDENT (UNTIL 6/30/25))

Highest reported compensation

  • LAURIE BRENNAN (PRESIDENT (UNTIL 6/30/25)): $312,311 total reported compensation
  • KATHLEEN DONAHUE (CFO (UNTIL 1/15/25)): $242,221 total reported compensation
  • KAREN ECONOMOPOULOS (CO-DIRECTOR): $210,226 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Support reform in both institutional and informal settings.

What it reported doing in 2024

Terc is a cambridge, ma based nonprofit made up of teams of forward-thinking stem experts dedicated to innovation and creative problem solving. Terc believes great futures are built through math and science. For more than 50 years, terc has taken a learner-centered approach to education in both formal and informal settings. At the frontier of theory and practice, terc's work encompasses research, content and curriculum development, technology innovation, professional development, and program evaluation. Through terc's curricula and programs, students develop the knowledge and skills needed to ask questions, solve problems, and expand their opportunities. Terc's professional development helps teachers and facilitators utilize new tools, materials, and inquiry-based strategies to enrich the learners.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 68% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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.

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 revenue has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 95.9%; rating input score 96
  • Program expense ratio: 75.9%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1,079 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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 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: -13.4%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.28; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.21; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.3%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.2% per year; rating input score 100; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1.2% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 95.9% of revenue deployed · 75.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $12.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $312K · 18 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $770K reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 8/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 45/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.