The Michael Phelps Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
611571538
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Litchfield Park, AZ, USA
Phone
2075368375
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Fund Raising and Fund Distribution

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,530,838
Expenses
$1,303,881
Assets
$1,679,239
Liabilities
$25,255

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • NICOLE PHELPS (PRESIDENT & CEO)
  • KAREN LINHART (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • KAREN LINHART (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $11,687 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 michael phelps foundation's (mfp) mission is to empower individuals to live healthier, more confident lives by providing water safety, mental wellness, and healthy living education, equipping people with the skills to thrive in and out of the water.

What it reported doing in 2025

Mpf's vision is a world where all individuals have the confidence, skills, and support to live health, safe, and fulfilling lives, in and out of the water. We develop program-driven solutions through our im program and have sustainable delivery through strategic partnerships such as the boys & girls clubs of america and special olympics international.in 2025, mpf funded 166 local program awards through its stragetic partners, resulting in a total of 13,800 participants in the im program. In addition, mpf trained 23 new im champion coaches in special olympics and supported coach development for teams in 38 countries.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 41% for direct work, and 59% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - 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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 59
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.6%; rating input score 63
  • Program expense ratio: 73.5%; rating input score 73
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.02 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 93.7%; rating input score 94; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 14.8%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.29; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.9%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 9.2% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.9% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.6% of revenue deployed · 73.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $958K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $12K · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 32 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 38/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 56/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.