The Aopa Foundation Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

See schedule othe aopa foundation (the foundation) is a tax-exempt charitable, educational, and scientific organization that educates the public about the value of general aviation. The foundation's mission is to ensure the future of general aviation by improving safety through the aircraft owners and pilots association's (aopa) air safety institute, preserving community airports, and encouraging learning to fly for career and personal benefit.you can flythe aopa foundation's you can fly program is a set of initiatives designed to get people flying and keep them flying. With initiatives to introduce high school students to career opportunities in aviation and aerospace, provide support for flight schools and students, deliver tools and resources to help pilots create and grow flying clubs, and help lapsed pilots get back in the air, you can fly is supporting aviators at every stage of their journey.the foundation provides free four year aviation stem curriculum to thousands of high school students nationwide. An annual symposium for educators helps schools create and grow aviation stem programs to meet their specific needs, while $1 million in scholarships are awarded annually to high school teachers and students to help them earn a pilot certificate.for flight schools, instructors, and students, the foundation is delivering training and tools designed to help reduce the dropout rate by making training more efficient, transparent, and customer focused. The annual flight training experience awards support best practices and recognize schools from across the country that deliver exceptional training experiences to their clients while the aopa flight training advantage platform brings adaptive learning into the flight deck.to help increase aircraft utilization and build a stronger community of aviators, the foundation is helping pilots launch and grow flying clubs. The foundation delivers extensive resources, including in person assistance and online guidance, to help pilots create new clubs. The foundation's flying club finder also lists hundreds of flying clubs, making it easier for pilots everywhere to connect with a club close to home.for lapsed pilots who want to return to flying, the foundation's rusty pilots initiative provides in person seminars and live webinars that give pilots three hours of ground training that fulfills the faa's flight review requirements for ground instruction. An online course option makes it possible for pilots to refresh their critical ground school knowledge anytime. Both the in person and the online programs provide faa wings credit.foundation grantsduring 2024, the aopa foundation granted $1,500,000 to various projects in support of its mission.the foundation provided a $600,000 grant to support aopa's air safety institute (asi). Asi serves all pilots by providing free or low-cost education programs to pilots and flight instructors nationwide, analyzing safety data, and conducting safety research. As a result of the grant, asi's material was accessed over 10 million times. This was made possible in part by the release of various new products including videos, podcasts, publications, and webinars to pilots and aviation enthusiasts. The foundation provided a $375,000 grant to support the aopa airport support network. The airport support network is a group of over 2,300 volunteers tasked with promoting, protecting, and defending america's community airports from pressures mounting against such airports.the foundation provided a $525,000 grant to support member outreach. Events are focused on providing aopa members educational content, access to aviation industry partners for transactions, and the opportunity to connect with the aviation community. Each event is intended to increase engagement by aopa members which will lead to safer pilots and a more robust aviation industry.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 71.1%; rating input score 71
• Program expense ratio: 89.2%; rating input score 89
• Fundraising efficiency: $24.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Missing
• Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
• 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: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 24th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Fail
  • 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: 35.6%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.46; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 11.2%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings