The American Agora Foundation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
204000236
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2019
Forms available
Form 990 2019
Location
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2125906873
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Historical Societies, Related Historical Activities

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,651,843
Expenses
$2,468,835
Assets
$783,117
Liabilities
$1,197,049

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2019. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LEWIS H LAPHAM (PRESIDENT/CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • LEWIS H LAPHAM (PRESIDENT/CEO): $219,900 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2019. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The american agora foundation, publisher of lapham's quarterly, is a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to fostering an interest in, and developing an acquaintance with history. The american agora foundation was created with the purpose of funding projects that promote an understanding and appreciation of history. It is the goal of the american agora foundation and of lapham's quarterly to add to the teaching arsenal of the educational community and to provide a rich cultural resource for enhancing a reflective analytic and evaluative consideration of the significance of history to a new generation of citizens.

What it reported doing in 2019

In order to fulfill its charitable purposes, the american agora foundation publishes a quarterly journal, lapham's quarterly. Lapham's quarterly's unique thematic format and its incorporation of four millennia of literature, art, and disclosure allow for the magazine to become part of a broader historical discussion and to further the foundation's educational mission. It is the goal of the american agora foundation and of lapham's quarterly to add to the teaching arsenal of the educational community and to provide a rich cultural resource for enhancing the love of history for a new generation of citizens.

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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.4%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 78.1%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $21.2 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 24th 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: 6.9%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.32; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.53; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.9%; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -6% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.4% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.4% of revenue deployed · 78.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 15 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $220K · 15 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $513K reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2009 to 2019
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 11/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 3/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 29/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.