Wellesley Historical Society Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042312840
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Wellesley, MA, USA
Phone
7812356690
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Historical Societies & Historic Preservation

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,283,730
Expenses
$370,456
Assets
$2,727,118
Liabilities
$143,330

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • FREDERICK WRIGHT (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • PETER MONGEAU (PRESIDENT)
  • TAYLOR KALLOCH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • TAYLOR KALLOCH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $65,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To serve as the historical resource center for the town of wellesley; to provide educational programs; to collect, interpret and display materials pertaining to the history of the town and its people; to inspire public involvement in and appreciation of its heritage and culture.

What it reported doing in 2024

To continue the process to archive over 33,500 photographs, slides and similar materials and hold over 9,700 artifacts such as furniture, art, commemorative items, period costumes, maps, plans, civil war library, lace embroidery collections and natural history specimens. Answer research inquiries, provide exhibits, lectures and walking tours. Provide scholarships to local students needing assistance to pursue a college education. Provide unpaid internship positions to individuals who helped prepare the organization's education programs and assist with the collections projects.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 79% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 41
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 79
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 20.2%; rating input score 20
  • Program expense ratio: 68.3%; rating input score 68
  • Fundraising efficiency: $27.4 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: 71.1%; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.36; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 17.5%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 20.2% of revenue deployed · 68.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $253K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $65K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 20/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 51/100.