The New Childrens Museum

What it reported doing in 2025

The Museum opened in a La Jolla shopping center in 1983 and moved to its current downtown location in 1993. Renaming itself the San Diego Childrens Museum/Museo de los Nios, it was among the first childrens museums to emphasize bilingual engagement and cross-border artist commissions. In 2003, the Museum closed its doors to function without walls while constructing a new home. For five years, community outreach, including to San Diegos underserved communities and schools, was its entire focus.In 2008, the Museum opened in its current, environmentally sustainable, three-story, 50,000 square-foot facility (designed by architect Rob Quigley). The Museum renamed itself The New Childrens Museum, with the word new signifying that it was a new model of childrens museum, focused on commissioning immersive contemporary art. The Museum is a community resource serving all of San Diego, and a backyard for urban families living downtown. The Museum provides a safe and engaging place to play and impacts the San Diego economy by providing work for artists, classes and camps, and a destination for local families as well as regional, national, and international tourists.The Museum was one of only five museums awarded the 2019 National Medal for Museum and Library Service in recognition of its outstanding service to the community. Widespread access continues to be the cornerstone of the Museums philosophy; with over 26% of its annual visitors coming for free or at discounted rates each year through an array of community access initiatives and partnerships.In May 2021, the Museum reopened to the public after a 14-month pandemic closure. After two months of being open, the Museum welcomed its 2,000,000th visitor in July 2021.The Museum is an arts-based childrens museum that serves as a community resource for early childhood creativity through contemporary art and open play. It invites families to think, play, and create in multiple ways: Children touch, jump, climb, and crawl as they physically explore large-scale, interactive installations created by commissioned contemporary artists. Each is notable for its aesthetics, conceptual ideas, creativity, playability, and layered interactions. Recently commissioned installations (late 2020 2024) include: Future Ancestral Technologies: Odyssey by Cannupa Hanska Luger; Disco Rainbow Cave by Tanya Aguiniga; The Breathing Room by Michelle Montjoy; El Ms All by Panca Villaseor; Wondersound, Cavern Light by Wes Bruce and Teatro Piata by David Reynoso. The Museum offers art-making and educational themes in its studio spaces through drop-in activities and scheduled workshops that are free with admission. Studio spaces currently include Disco Rainbow Cave by Tanya Aguiiga, where young visitors explore manipulatives that stimulate the senses; The Rosso Family Foundation Innovators LAB, the Museums makerspace where children explore art projects; Clay Studio, where visitors sculpt and take-home clay creations; Paint Studio, that lets children paint a full-sized object (currently the Loving Dragon); and Toddler Time workshops that include finger painting, movement, music, and story time.In 2025, the Museum expanded its commitment to creative access and engagement for children and families through a range of in-person programs and community partnerships. The Museum operated a robust school visit and school partnership program, serving over 3,700 students through hands-on, art-based learning experiences.The Museum also continued to provide Arts/Learning Kits to community partners and schools, offering flexible opportunities for creative engagement both on-site and in community settings. These kits include basic art supplies and guided activities designed to support learning and creativity in diverse environments.Throughout the year, the Museum presented programs aligned with its thematic arc Science Fiction Creates the Future, including four author visits as part of its Seeding Futures series, as well as cross-gener

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 85.3%; rating input score 85
• Program expense ratio: 69.3%; rating input score 69
• Fundraising efficiency: $2.45 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • 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: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: -22.8%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.22; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 10.6%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -1% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings