The Autism Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
050512037
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Johnston, RI, USA
Phone
4016676502
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Health

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,411,062
Expenses
$2,404,269
Assets
$1,000,141
Liabilities
$1,050,620

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

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Joanne Quinn (President & Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • John Fernandez (Director): $2,016,723 total reported compensation
  • Peter K Markell (EVP & CFO): $1,505,315 total reported compensation
  • Scott DiChristofero (Fmr Officer): $188,030 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 Autism Project (TAP) is a comprehensive coordinated system of services and resources for meeting the needs of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and providing related services to their families and those who work with them in the Rhode Island area.

What it reported doing in 2024

TAP employs Family Support Specialists (FSS) who work to help family members navigate the system of care in Rhode Island. Activities include one-to-one mentorship meetings which provide program information and resources, assistance with insurance issues, coaching on educational concerns and advocacy, and the provision of a safe place to seek help and discuss concerns. A unique program is TAP's Grandparent Support Group, which meets monthly and averages 8 attendees. TAP provides training for parents, professionals, and caregivers in both English and Spanish and makes support calls on such topics as Toilet Training, Why ask Why? (Positive Behavior Supports), Visual Support and Understanding ASD, and the Parent Training Series (5-week parent coaching model).TAP's Family Support Specialists (FSS) also work with agencies, organizations, and families through on-site trainings to teach participants to recognize developmental milestones, to support concerns families may have, and to provide the tools necessary to empower families to make informed decisions and access care. TAP's FSS staff trained approximately 300 parents during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2025. FSS staff also spent over 1,000 hours consulting in school districts and early childhood education facilities.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 85% of the money available for current operations came from other operating 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 62
  • Accountability: 86
  • Sustainability: 22
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 73.9%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 74.1%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th 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: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 21st 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: 0.3%; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.42; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.05; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 22.1%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.9% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.3% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 73.9% of revenue deployed · 74.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $2M · 14 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 46 of 47 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 40 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 7/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 35/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 14/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 4/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.