The Children's Museum Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
060896043
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Simsbury, CT, USA
Phone
8607264007
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Natural History, Natural Science Museums

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,554,933
Expenses
$2,856,160
Assets
$4,379,744
Liabilities
$2,599,316

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • MELISSA DINUNNO (EXECUTIVE DI): $138,043 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The children's museum group's mission is to inspire lifelong learning among children and their caregivers by providing experientiall earning opportunities covering steam, health, nature and the environment. With a focus on at need communities the museum group strives to find pathways to personal, academic and professional growth and to foster an appreciation of the natural world with a goal of developing curious, confident and innovative children, creating the basis for successful adults. The museum group has three distinct but complementary lines of revenue-generating centers of excellence. The museum offers interactive exhibits for young children, live animals and an extensive selection of steam education programs that are offered within communities throughout Connecticut and neighboring states. The children's museum preschool, co-located within the museum location, is a naeyc accredited, full day, year-round licensed early childhood education facility for ages 3-5yrs.

What it reported doing in 2025

Roaring brook nature center provides natural history/environmental education programs to Connecticut communities. Programs include outreach and school visitations, as well as scout, summer, preschool and public programs. Serving as a resource to area residents with environmental concerns, the center answers thousands of nature related questions annually. The center receives over 300 injured or orphaned native animals each year for rehabilitation. The goal is to release animals back into the wild, however, permanently injured wildlife may be housed at the center and the collection includes a variety of raptors, small mammals, reptiles and amphibians. Animals are used to promote knowledge of behaviors, adaptations within Connecticut fauna. The center maintains wildflower trails, a native plant butterfly garden and serves as steward for five miles of trails on the adjacent 158 acre state owned werner's woods property.

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.
  • 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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 93.5%; rating input score 93
  • Program expense ratio: 82.9%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.27 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

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: 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: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -11.8%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.53; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.59; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.8%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 93.5% of revenue deployed · 82.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $138K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 8/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 49/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 13/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.