Thomas Edison & Henry Ford Winter Estates Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 200243438
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Fort Myers, FL, USA
- Phone
- 2393347419
- Rating
- 81
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Historical Societies, Related Historical Activities
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $4,947,769
- Expenses
- $5,507,664
- Assets
- $4,893,624
- Liabilities
- $759,321
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
21 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- MICHAEL A FLANDERS (PRESIDENT/CE)
Highest reported compensation
- MICHAEL A FLANDERS (PRESIDENT/CE): $191,686 total reported compensation
- THOMAS HOTTOVY (CFO): $140,803 total reported compensation
- MICHAEL COSDEN (EXEC VP): $116,713 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The mission is to educate the public and inspire an inventive spirit by interpreting and preserving the innovations, legacies, artifacts, gardens, homes, laboratory, and other structures of thomas edison and henry ford, emphasizing Florida history, science, horticulture, and the arts.
What it reported doing in 2024
The primary exempt purposes of the organization is the conservation, management and education program presented to the general public of the thomas edison and henry ford winter estates which includes 20 acres of historical gardens, 9 historic buildings, a museum and the original 1927 edison botanic lab. The property has been designated by the national register of historic places and won the top restoration award from the national trust for historic preservation in 2008. It has won the Florida award for landscape restoration for work in the heritage gardens. The site is also a Florida historic landmark, an original save america's treasures and a restore america project of the national trust. The property is open daily year-round for the purpose of providing tours, lectures, classes, research and other program experiences for the general public, school and special groups. The annual visitation is approximately 250,000. All revenues are directed to the preservation, conservation and interpretation activities of the organization. There are approximately 100 paid professional staff and 150 volunteers who help carry out the educational and conservation activities of the organization. In 2014 the edison botanic research laboratory was designated as a national historic chemical landmark by the american chemical society.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Other-operating. 94% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
- 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
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 84
- Transparency & Controls: 74
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 25
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 84.1%; rating input score 84
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Missing
- 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: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -11.3%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.89; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.16; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 8.2%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 0.1% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 0.8% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 84.1% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $192K · 21 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $345K reported
- Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 12/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 33/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 36/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 50/100.