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539 W ROOSEVELT RD NBR 1188
Elmhurst IL 60137-5734
Elmhurst IL | IRS ruling year: 1968 | EIN: 36-2612784
The American Hearing Research Foundation serves two vital roles: to fund significant research in hearing and balance disorders, and to help educate the public about ... (More)
The American Hearing Research Foundation serves two vital roles: to fund significant research in hearing and balance disorders, and to help educate the public about hearing loss and balance disorders related to the inner ear. (Less)
Great
This charity's score is 100%, earning it a Four-Star rating. If this organization aligns with your passions and values, you can give with confidence.
This overall score is calculated from multiple beacon scores: 90% Accountability & Finance, 10% Leadership & Adaptability. Learn more about our criteria and methodology.
We recognize that not all metrics and beacons equally predict a charity’s success. The percentage each beacon contributes to the organization’s overall rating depends on the number of beacons an organization has earned.
Use the tool below to select different beacons to see how the weighting shifts when only one, two, or three beacons are earned.
Rating histories are available for a growing number of rated organizations. Check back later to see if this organization has a rating history!
The IRS is significantly delayed in processing nonprofits' annual tax filings (Forms 990). As a result, the Accountability & Finance score for American Hearing Research Foundation is outdated and the overall rating may not be representative of its current operations. Please check with the charity directly for any questions you may have.
American Hearing Research Foundation has earned a 100% for the Accountability & Finance beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of a charity's financial health (financial efficiency, sustainability, and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies.
This Accountability & Finance score represents IRS Form 990 data up until FY 2020, which is the most recent Form 990 currently available to us.
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Full Credit
Partial Credit
No Credit
Not ApplicableBoard Composition - 14/14 - 35/35 ptsBoard Composition - 14/14 - 35/35 pts
Charity Navigator looks for at least 3 board members, with more than 50% of those members identified as independent (not salaried).
The presence of an independent governing body is strongly recommended by many industry professionals to allow for full deliberation and diversity of thinking on governance and other organizational matters.
Source: IRS Form 990
Independent Audit or Financial Review - N/A - 0/0 ptsIndependent Audit or Financial Review - N/A - 0/0 pts
An Audit, Review, or Compilation provides important information about financial accountability and accuracy. Organizations are scored based on their Total Revenue Amount:
| Total Revenue Amount | Expectation to Receive Credit |
|---|---|
| $1 million or higher | Expected to complete an audit |
| $500,000 - $1 million | Expected to complete an audit, review, or compilation |
| Less than $500,000 | No expectation (removed from scoring methodology) |
Source: IRS Form 990
Conflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 5/5 ptsConflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 5/5 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a conflict of interest policy on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy protects the organization and by extension those it serves, when it is considering entering into a transaction that may benefit the private interest of an officer, director and/or key employee of the organization.
Source: IRS Form 990
Board Meeting Minutes - Documented - 5/5 ptsBoard Meeting Minutes - Documented - 5/5 pts
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990 that the organization has this process in place as an accountability and transparency measure.
An official record of the events that take place during a board meeting ensures that a contemporaneous document exists for future reference.
Source: IRS Form 990
Document Retention and Destruction - Listed - 5/5 ptsDocument Retention and Destruction - Listed - 5/5 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a document retention and destruction policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy establishes guidelines for the handling, backing up, archiving and destruction of documents. These guidelines foster good record keeping procedures that promote data integrity.
Source: IRS Form 990
Whistleblower Policy - Listed - 5/5 ptsWhistleblower Policy - Listed - 5/5 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a whistleblower policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy outlines procedures for handling employee complaints, as well as a confidential way for employees to report financial or other types of mismanagement.
Source: IRS Form 990
Website - Listed - 5/5 ptsWebsite - Listed - 5/5 pts
Charity Navigator looks for a website on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency metric.
Nonprofits act in the public trust and reporting publicly on activities is an important component.
Source: IRS Form 990
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 2.64% - 15/15 ptsLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 2.64% - 15/15 pts
The Liabilities to Assets Ratio is determined by Total Liabilities divided by Total Assets (most recent 990). This ratio is an indicator of an organization’s solvency and/or long-term sustainability.
| Liabilities to Assets Ratio | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| Less than 50% | Full Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Partial Credit |
| 60% or more | No Credit |
Source: IRS Form 990
Program Expense Ratio - 82.15% - 25/25 ptsProgram Expense Ratio - 82.15% - 25/25 pts
The Program Expense Ratio is determined by Program Expenses divided by Total Expense (average of most recent three 990s). This measure reflects the percent of its total expenses a charity spends on the programs and services it exists to deliver.
| Program Expense Percentage | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| 70% or higher | Full Credit |
| 60% - 69.9% | Partial Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Zero Points for Program Expense Score |
| Below 50% | Zero Points for Both Program Expense AND Liabilities to Assets Scores |
Source: IRS Form 990
This chart displays the trend of revenue and expenses over the past several years for this organization, as reported on their IRS Form 990.
No Data Available
Key Persons data is currently unavailable for this organization. This data is only available if this charity has at least one year of electronically-filed Form 990 data filed within the last six years.
Below are some key data points from the Exempt Organization IRS Business Master File (BMF) for this organization. Learn more about the BMF on the IRS website
Activities:
Other school related activities (BMF activity code: 059)
Foundation Status:
Organization that normally receives no more than one-third of its support from gross investment income and unrelated business income and at the same time more than one-third of its support from contributions, fees, and gross receipts related to exempt purposes. 509(a)(2) (BMF foundation code: 16)
Affiliation:
Independent - the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary (i.e., not affiliated with a National, Regional, or Geographic grouping of organizations). (BMF affiliation code: 3)
The Form 990 is a document that nonprofit organizations file with the IRS annually. We leverage finance and accountability data from it to form Encompass ratings. Click here to search for this organization's Forms 990 on the IRS website (if any are available). Simply enter the organization's name (American Hearing Research Foundation) or EIN (362612784) in the 'Search Term' field.
This organization was impacted by COVID-19 in a way that effected their financial health in 2020. This normally would have reduced their star rating. Due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, we give charities such as this one the opportunity to share the story of COVID's impact on them, and doing this pauses our revision of their rating. Charities may submit their own pandemic responses through their nonprofit portal.
American Hearing Research Foundation reported being impacted by COVID-19 in the following ways:
Fundraising Capacity
Staffing
With COVID, we were short-staffed. Like other organizations, we had to keep pivoting to respond to changes - hosting meetings virtually with people unaccustomed to this format, responding to our grantees whose projects were affected by COVID. Our grant recipients had issues with reduced staff, couldn't access worksites, delayed supplies, and suspended clinical trials. We had to consider their requests for more time and additional funding.
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's operations financially:
Although donations to our organization decreased in number, we did not have a reduced amount. AHRF received a bequest that made up for the loss in general donations.
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's delivery of programs:
We shifted from three in-person board and committee meetings to a virtual format. This allowed us to continue these efforts uninterrupted. The extra time spent on communication reduced the amount of time we could spend on newsletter creation.
How this organization adapted to changing conditions caused by COVID-19:
We moved in-person meetings to virtual format.
Innovations the organization intends to continue permanently after the pandemic:
It looks like we will continue hosting Board and Committee meetings with an option to attend either in person or virtually.
Not Currently Scored
American Hearing Research Foundation cannot currently be evaluated by our Impact & Results methodology because either (A) it is eligible, but we have not yet received data; (B) we have not yet developed an algorithm to estimate its programmatic impact; (C) its programs are not direct services; or (D) it is not heavily reliant on contributions from individual donors.
Note: The absence of a score does not indicate a positive or negative assessment, it only indicates that we have not yet evaluated the organization.
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American Hearing Research Foundation reported its two largest programs on its FY 2020 Form 990 as:
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
To promote, conduct, and furnish financial assistance for medical research into causes, prevention, and cure of deafness, impaired hearing, and balance disorders.
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
Program Service Support Expenses - meetings, office supplies, printing, information technology, etc.
American Hearing Research Foundation cannot currently be evaluated by our Culture & Community methodology because we have not received data from the charity regarding its Constituent Feedback or Equity Practices strategies.
Note: The absence of a score does not indicate a positive or negative assessment, it only indicates that we have not yet evaluated the organization.
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American Hearing Research Foundation has earned a 100% for the Leadership & Adaptability beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of the organization's leadership capacity, strategic thinking and planning, and ability to innovate or respond to changes in constituent demand/need or other relevant social and economic conditions to achieve the organization's mission.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableMission - 10/10 ptsMission - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization's mission
The mission of the American Hearing Research Foundation is to fund groundbreaking research to understand our hearing and balance functions, and educate people on how to prevent, identify, preserve and restore these.
Vision - 10/10 ptsVision - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization’s vision.
A world where people thrive by preventing, identifying, and responding to hearing loss and balance disorders.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Goals - 20/20 ptsGoals - 20/20 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking and goal setting through sharing their most important strategic goals.
Goal One: To expand AHRF's public education efforts in an effort to raise awareness about the developing hearing health crisis
Goal Type: This goal reflects our commitment to further our advocacy work for our organization and or cause area.
Goal Two: To raise public awareness of AHRF's mission to help solve the hearing health crisis
Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.
Goal Three: To further engage board members so they more deeply understand and are committed to AHRF's mission.
Goal Type: Focus on core programs to achieve mission and scale back on programs not seen as core.
Leadership Development - 15/15 ptsLeadership Development - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of investment in leadership development
The AHRF Board conducted a strategic planning session in November 2021, to provide a roadmap for the future. A task force has since worked on updating the AHRF mission statement, and creating vision and values statements. The Board is developing a new tools to better understand AHRF's purpose and scope.
Mobilizing for Mission - 15/15 ptsMobilizing for Mission - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of leadership through focusing externally and mobilizing resources for the mission.
Networks of Collective Impact Efforts
Raising Awareness
AHRF's Executive Director participates in a Chicago-area philanthropic network to share ideas and nonprofit best practices. In 2022, AHRF is placing special focus on its marketing and social media efforts, to raise public awareness about important hearing health issues, and the impact of and need for hearing research.
Adaptability Story - 30/30 ptsAdaptability Story - 30/30 pts
The nonprofit has an opportunity to tell the story of how the organization adapted to tremendous external changes in the last year.
In 2022, after 27 years (38 years of board service in total), Richard Muench stepped down from the role of AHRF Board Chair. The Board rose to the challenge, examining its governance and strategic plan to create a roadmap for its future. Mark Muench was elected as new Chair.
Impact & Results
Accountability & Finance
Culture & Community
Leadership & Adaptability
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