The Douglas and Frances Lanier Foundation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
460782584
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2018
Location
Gulfport, MS, USA
Phone
2282238534
Rating
53
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Scholarships, Student Financial Aid Services, Awards

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,085,264
Expenses
$96,792
Assets
$2,034,289
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Blair E Seegers (President)
  • Douglas C Lanier Jr (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Kelly Lanier (Treasurer/Secretary): $18,000 total reported compensation
  • Blair E Seegers (President): $16,500 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 Foundations mission is to provide scholarships to students in the United States.

What it reported doing in 2025

Educational Scholarships

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 93% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 64% of its reported program spending out as grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and most filed governance safeguards are in place. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 36
  • Transparency & Controls: 64
  • Accountability: 61
  • Sustainability: 86
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 25.5%; rating input score 26
  • Program expense ratio: 65.9%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 0%; rating input score 0; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 57.1%; rating input score 57; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 91.1%; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 21.02; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 35.6%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -16.9% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 14% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 24.7% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 25.5% of revenue deployed · 65.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 7 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $64K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $18K · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 18 of 19 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2017 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 26/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 57/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.