Upper Housatonic Valley National He

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
061613798
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Salisbury, CT, USA
Phone
8604359505
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Historical Societies, Related Historical Activities

Reported finances

Revenue
$808,624
Expenses
$878,083
Assets
$205,538
Liabilities
$38,371

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

People named in this filing

  • KATHRYN BOUGHTON (TRUSTEE)
  • MAUREEN DORE (TRUSTEE)
  • MARIAH FOGG (TREASURER)

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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Preservation of historical, natural cultural and artistic resources in the region.

What it reported doing in 2024

The upper housatonic valley national heritage area (housatonic heritage) is working in partnership with the nonprofit du bois freedom center (formerly clinton church restoration) to create an african american heritage site of national significance at the historic clinton a.m.e. Zion church in great barrington, Massachusetts. The projects overall goal is to preserve and restore the national register property, now deconsecrated, and transform it into a multi-faceted cultural center that will interpret the life and legacy of pioneering civil rights activist, author, scholar, and great barrington native, w.e.b. Du bois, and educate the public about the regions rich african american history and the role of the black church in this rural new england town. 283,916.00 in sub-award of federal grant (nps aacr) p21ap118370 for restoration. The upper housatonic valley national heritage area (housatonic heritage) received a grant from the national park service for stabilization and structural repair at the historic clinton a.m.e. Zion church in downtown great barrington. The national park service african american civil rights grant award is part of 14 million awarded to 51 projects in 20 states that preserve sites and history related to the african american struggle for equality in the 20th century. The grant is funded through the historic preservation fund (hpf) and is administered by the national park service (nps). 10,000 in sub-award of federal grant (nps aacr) p20ap001280 for interpretation. The upper housatonic valley national heritage area (housatonic heritage) received a grant from the national park service for interpretive exhibit design at the historic clinton a.m.e. Zion church in downtown great barrington. The national park service african american civil rights grant award is part of 14 million awarded to 51 projects in 20 states that preserve sites and history related to the african american struggle for equality in the 20th century. The grant is funded through the historic preservation fund (hpf) and is administered by the national park service (nps).

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 98% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 47% for direct work, and 53% for grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 92
  • Transparency & Controls: 89
  • Accountability: 70
  • Sustainability: 26
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 97.4%; rating input score 97
  • Program expense ratio: 89.6%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $34.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 97.6%; rating input score 98; 45th 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: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -8.6%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.23; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 12.4% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.8% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.4% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 97.4% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $787K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 19/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 11/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 33/100.