Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

Legal name: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
621471789
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Official website data refreshed
Aug 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Nashville, TN, US
Phone
(615) 321-4939
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Community Foundations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$239,914,601
Expenses
$129,670,728
Assets
$831,994,324
Liabilities
$28,849,086

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

Leadership & pay

49 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • HAL CATO (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • HAL CATO (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $271,697 total reported compensation
  • JAMES MUNCH (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $208,306 total reported compensation
  • BENJA HUTCHENS (VP OF HR AND ADMIN): $156,564 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To inspire philanthropy and strengthen community by connecting people who care with causes that matter.

What it reported doing in 2024

Community foundation of middle Tennessee makes giving impactful and straightforward. Through grantmaking, philanthropic services, and community leadership, cfmt connects people and resources to support nonprofits, address urgent needs, and invest in solutions that help middle Tennessee thrive today and for generations to come.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 81% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 98% of its reported program spending out as grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filed totals do not add up.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 80
  • Accountability: 99
  • Sustainability: 91
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 55.4%; rating input score 55
  • Program expense ratio: 93.2%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: $104.88 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 95.6%; rating input score 96; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 97.7%; rating input score 98; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: 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: 46%; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.42; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.9%; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.3% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.3% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 8 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 55.4% of revenue deployed · 93.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 42 of 43 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $120.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $272K · 49 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.1M reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 39 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2457 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2403 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.
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.