The Society For Classical Studies
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 136018127
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2023
- Forms available
- Form 990 2023
- Location
- New York, NY, USA
- Phone
- 2129927828
- Rating
- 80
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Adult, Continuing Education
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,276,038
- Expenses
- $1,595,448
- Assets
- $9,577,087
- Liabilities
- $642,683
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
24 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ALISON KEITH (PRESIDENT)
- KIRK ORMAND (PRESIDENT-ELECT)
People named in this filing
- ZOE THOMAS (GRADUATE STUDENT DIRECTOR)
- ELIZABETH MERCIER (CONTINGENT FACULTY DIRECTOR)
- ROSA ANDUJAR (VP PROGRAM)
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 2023. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To advance knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of the ancient greek and roman world and its enduring value.
What it reported doing in 2023
Scholarly resources include: [a] research support: grants to major ongoing projects in lexicography and bibliography and annual awards; and [b] publications: dissemination of scholarly work in classical studies by means of books, software, newsletters, a scholarly journal and a blog.
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 83% 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
STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 91
- Transparency & Controls: 69
- Accountability: 88
- Sustainability: 45
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 88.5%; rating input score 88
- Fundraising efficiency: $15.54 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
- Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
- Requires narrative reports: Fail
- Conducts field audits: Fail
- May suspend future funding: Fail
- Requires financial reports: Fail
- Conducts site visits: Fail
- Requires grant agreements: Fail
- May require repayment: Fail
- Grant itemization coverage: 84.1%; rating input score 84; 36th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -25%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 6; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 1.1% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -2.1% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 88.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 18 of 18 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 24 people listed
- Consistency: 30 of 32 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2009 to 2023
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
- 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.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 8 of 8 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 8/100.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 50/100.