The Philadelphia Society

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
366151680
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Grand Rapids, MI, USA
Phone
5176885111
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$585,890
Expenses
$615,455
Assets
$1,121,744
Liabilities
$29,275

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

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOSEPH MORRIS (PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • JOSEPH MORRIS (PRESIDENT)
  • DR MICHAEL MUNGER (1ST VICE PRE)
  • ROBERT ALT (2ND VICE PRE)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

Educational programs that allow for the interchange of ideas in the interest of deepening the intellectual foundation of a free and ordered society and of broadening the understanding of its basic principles and traditions.

What it reported doing in 2025

Founders' fellows - the founders' fellows program brings together 12 rising leaders dedicated to advancing the intellectual foundations of a free and ordered society. Participants are selected from a pool of distinguished candidates who demonstrate academic excellence, exceptional leadership in their field, and a desire to study and debate the essential ideas of the american founding and the future of freedom. Fellows will participate in a day-long socratic discussion colloquium in advance of attending the society's spring meeting. Discussion sessions will be led by leading experts in the liberty movement.

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 89% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 42
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.3%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 70%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.53 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -5%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.82; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.8% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.9% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.3% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 74.3% of revenue deployed · 70% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 18 of 18 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $431K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 20 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 30/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 19/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 50/100.