Virginia Opera Association Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
540985006
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Norfolk, VA, USA
Phone
7576279545
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Culture, and Humanities

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,942,255
Expenses
$5,219,214
Assets
$1,014,176
Liabilities
$1,027,990

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

Leadership & pay

37 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOHN-PAUL SCHAEFER (GENERAL DIRECTOR & CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOHN-PAUL SCHAEFER (GENERAL DIRECTOR & CEO): $184,000 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 Virginia opera association, inc. Works to attract, educate, develop and engage a diverse base of audiences, volunteers and professionals through the promotion and production of quality performances in the commonwealth of Virginia.

What it reported doing in 2024

Performance of operas for the public as well as cultural education programs for students and other groups.

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 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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 19
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78.7%; rating input score 79
  • Program expense ratio: 74.4%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.6%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.19; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.01; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.5%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.3% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.7% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 78.7% of revenue deployed · 74.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 36 of 36 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $184K · 37 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $356K reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 40/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 19/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 5/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 5/100.