University of Central Florida Foundation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
596211832
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Orlando, FL, USA
Phone
407-882-1220
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$85,702,217
Expenses
$76,812,374
Assets
$678,672,014
Liabilities
$157,702,914

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

39 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • RODNEY M GRABOWSKI (CEO & SENIOR VP FOR ADV. & PART.)

Highest reported compensation

  • RODNEY M GRABOWSKI (CEO & SENIOR VP FOR ADV. & PART.): $568,596 total reported compensation
  • MARK WRIGHT (ASSC VP, ATHLETICS DEVELOPMENT): $404,902 total reported compensation
  • GINA SHOLTIS THRU 0125 (SENIOR ASSOCIATE VP FOR DEVELOPMENT): $383,065 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Transforming lives through philanthropy.

What it reported doing in 2024

Ucf is dedicated to enriching the lives of ucf students and solicits donations to support scholarships that benefit them. Scholarship funds are transferred to the university for administration and processing and are designed to reward, inspire and assist students in pursuing academic excellence and help attract a diverse student body. The fall 2025 freshman class had an average sat score of 1347 and an average high school gpa of 4.26. Nearly half of ucf's student population are from traditionally underrepresented groups and more than 20% are first-generation college students. With 70,674 students, ucf is the largest university by enrollment in Florida; this includes 60,083 undergraduate students, 10,120 graduate students and 465 m.d. Students. Ucf ranks second among Florida's state universities, with 303 national merit scholars enrolled. In fy2025, 2,112 scholarships were awarded, $122.3 million was awarded to bright futures students, and 73.3% of undergraduates received $585.3 million in financial aid. Seventy percent of ftic (first-time in college) students at ucf also graduated without any educational debt, compared to only 42% of students who graduate debt-free nationally.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 62% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 87% of its reported program spending out as grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 60
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 78
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.3%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 70.7%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.86 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 42nd 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: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 10.4%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.84; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.6%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 5 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 74.3% of revenue deployed · 70.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 26 of 28 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $54.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $569K · 39 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2.9M reported
  • Consistency: 40 of 40 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 12 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 5 filed related-organization links
  • 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: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: CEO compensation review process not reported.