The Nussbaum Center for Entrepreneurship Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
561577495
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Greensboro, NC, USA
Phone
3363795001
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Small Business Development

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,511,661
Expenses
$1,305,237
Assets
$11,589,176
Liabilities
$1,239,105

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

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SAM FUNCHESS (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • LISA HAZLETT (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • SAM FUNCHESS (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $151,486 total reported compensation
  • LISA HAZLETT (PRESIDENT): $104,986 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Further economic development and social welfare in greensboro and surrounding areas with emphasis on promoting and assisting the growth and development of small businesses.

What it reported doing in 2025

Operates an incubator facility to assist non-retail emerging and start-up enterprises by providing low cost, furnished office and light manufacturing space along with shared support services including receptionist, consulting, and secretarial services. By assisting these new businesses in becoming successful entities, the center offers enhanced employment opportunites and other economic benefits to the greater greensboro area.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 62
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.1%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 87.5%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $14.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 13.7%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.88; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.11; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 19.6%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.5% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -1.5% per year; rating input score 0; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.1% of revenue deployed · 87.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $151K · 15 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 47/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 17/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 34/100.