The Foundation of the Lancaster Chamber

What it reported doing in 2025

The foundation provides support to the business community through the work of the lancaster chamber, providing funding for specific targeted programs. In 2025, the foundation's primary focus were pathways into the workforce. Building future talent is essential to lancaster county's long-term economic sustainability. In 2025, the lancaster chamber strengthened pathways into the workforce by launching workforce reimagined, an employer-partnered workforce strategy designed to address current workforce challenges, anticipate future needs, and connect people to opportunity across the county. Through mentoring, education-to-career connections with discovering paths mentoring program and inspire lancaster and connecting employers with future talent with land in lancaster. This strategy aligned employers, educators, and community partners around shared solutions that expand access, strengthen talent pipelines, and position lancaster county as a thriving hub for both careers and quality of life. Through discovering paths, 140 students participated in experiential learning, and one-on-one mentorship, and career exploration with 330 mentors, facilitators, advisory members, and liaisons, gaining direct exposure to careers and increased confidence in their next steps. The impact was significant: students reporting a good or strong understanding of career options increased from 50% to 90%, while understanding of career pathways in in-demand industries rose from 27% to 87%. Confidence in workplace readiness skills grew from 53% to 93%, and awareness of educational options increased from 46% to 89%. Launched in july 2025, land in lancaster introduced employers and partners to a new, countywide talent attraction strategy. The chamber engaged 247 attendees through 7 information sessions, equipping businesses with tools to support recruitment and retention. In addition, the land in lancaster employee resources page generated 710 visits, signaling early employer interest in resources designed to connect talent with opportunity and position lancaster county as a place to live and work. 95 businesses participated in inspire lancaster introducing students to almost 100 local career opportunities including apprenticeships, internships, job shadows, industry and business tours, mentorship, mock interviews, career speakers, and educator externships, thus reinforcing lancaster county to explore careers and build a future. The foundation also facilitated a middle school civics bee, receiving over 40 essay submissions from schools across lancaster county and engaging 20 student finalist participants. The cultivate program continued in 2025, which informs, navigates, connects and coordinates entrepreneurs with business resource providers to achieve prosperity and equitable economic growth across lancaster county. The tandem program continued in 2025, which offers pathways for business success through profit sharing and direct employee ownership that leads to shared prosperity and stronger communities.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 98.4%; rating input score 98
• Program expense ratio: 81.8%; rating input score 82
• Fundraising efficiency: $31.34 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 23rd 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: -20.2%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.93; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.11; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 26.9%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 11.2% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings