Urban History Association
Legal name: The Urban History Association Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 363765254
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2023–2025
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2022
- Location
- New Haven, CT, USA
- Phone
- 7348646892
- Rating
- 79
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Religion Related N.E.C.
- Affiliation
- Religious (unspecified)
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $262,472
- Expenses
- $207,436
- Assets
- $355,394
- Liabilities
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
26 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ANDREW SANDOVAL-STRAUSZ (PRESIDENT)
- ELIZABETH HINTON (PRESIDENT-ELECT)
- DANIELA SHEININ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- DANIELA SHEININ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $31,956 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 Urban History Association was founded in Cincinnati in 1988 for the purpose of stimulating interest and research in the history of the city in all periods and geographical areas; it provides a forum for the discussion of urban history through its biennial conferences, newsletters, and the Journal of Urban History.
What it reported doing in 2025
Best awards - 7 awards are given out annually for best urban history article in scholarly journal, best book in north american history, best dissertation in urban history, best book in non-north american urban history, best book in european history, best first book, best book on cities and political power, and graduate student blog award. In conference years, a best graduate student paper prize is awarded. 8 individuals received awards in 2025.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 67% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 69
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 90
- Sustainability: 62
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 63.1%; rating input score 63
- Program expense ratio: 81.2%; rating input score 81
- Fundraising efficiency: $25.08 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 21%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.71; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 15.4%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -17.1% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 25.1% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 0.8% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 63.1% of revenue deployed · 81.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 23 of 23 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $168K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $32K · 26 people listed
- Consistency: 21 of 21 current checks pass
- Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 3 filing years from 2023 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
- 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 — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 55/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 22/100.