The Denver Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
846048381
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Jul 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Denver, CO, United States
Phone
303.300.1790
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Community Foundations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$208,259,786
Expenses
$161,755,855
Assets
$1,322,643,652
Liabilities
$129,775,557

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

Leadership & pay

28 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JAVIER A SOTO (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JAVIER A SOTO (PRESIDENT): $534,496 total reported compensation
  • DACE WEST-SCHLUE (CHIEF IMPACT OFFICER): $281,754 total reported compensation
  • MARGARET DANUSER (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $251,684 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

We inspire people and mobilize resources to strengthen our community. For 100 years, The Denver Foundation has been building a stronger, thriving Metro Denver, Colorado, and beyond. We’ve received $2.1 billion from generous donors and given $1.6 billion in grants to support community initiatives. We’re the foundation of Denver, connecting and collaborating to address the current and future challenges of our community. What We Do As a tax-exempt, nonprofit, philanthropic organization, The Denver Foundation stewards more than 1,000 funds established by generous donors. In partnership with the foundation, our donors make gifts to organizations throughout the seven-county Metro Denver region, across Colorado, and beyond.

What it reported doing in 2024

Community grants program: the denver foundation's donor-built permanent endowment fuels the community grants program, which supports constituent-led organizations that work to reduce disparities in their communities. The community grants program helps nonprofit organizations create positive change. Through this grantmaking, the foundation supports nonprofits that serve the seven-county metro denver area; advancing the foundation's core values; and aligning with the foundation's priority funding areas of climate and environment, economic opportunity, youth well-being, and housing. To be eligible for funding, organizations must have a 501(c)3 tax exempt status, serve residents in adams, arapahoe, boulder, broomfield, denver, douglas, or jefferson counties, and fulfill the goals outlined in the published grant.

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 96% 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 available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and some filed totals do not add up.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 97
  • Sustainability: 86
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.7%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 91.8%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: $54.69 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 31st 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: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Pass
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99.2%; rating input score 99; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 47th 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: 22.3%; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.18; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.3%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.1% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 88.7% of revenue deployed · 91.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 18 of 19 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $148.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $534K · 28 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.6M reported
  • Consistency: 41 of 42 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1193 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1182 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.