Mission: Committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again, the Buoniconti family established The Buonic ... (More)
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis is a 501(c)(3) organization, with an IRS ruling year of 1991, and donations are tax-deductible.
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Important note on the timeliness of ratings
The IRS is significantly delayed in processing nonprofits' annual tax filings (Forms 990). As a result, the Financial and Accountability & Transparency score for The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis is outdated and the overall rating may not be representative of its current operations.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.
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Star Rating System by Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator evaluates a nonprofit organization’s financial health including measures of stability, efficiency and sustainability. We also track accountability and transparency policies to ensure the good governance and integrity of the organization.
Good
This charity's score is 84.42, earning it a 3-Star rating. Donors can "Give with Confidence" to this charity.
This score is calculated from two sub-scores:
Finance: 79.11 View details
Accountability & Transparency: 93.00 View details
This score represents Form 990 data from 2019. More recent filing data is available, but it has not been factored into this score, due to COVID-19's effect on this organization.
View this organization’s historical ratings.
Rating update postponed due to COVID-19's impact on this organization. View The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis's response.
Star Rated Report
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Program Expense Ratio
81.9%
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. Dividing a charity's average program expenses by its average total functional expenses yields this percentage. We calculate the charity's average expenses over its three most recent fiscal years.
Source: IRS Form 990
Administrative Expenses
5.0%
As reported by charities on their IRS Form 990, this measure reflects what percent of its total budget a charity spends on overhead, administrative staff and associated costs, and organizational meetings. Dividing a charity's average administrative expenses by its average total functional expenses yields this percentage. We calculate the charity's average expenses over its three most recent fiscal years.
Source: IRS Form 990
Fundraising Expenses
12.9%
This measure reflects what a charity spends to raise money. Fundraising expenses can include campaign printing, publicity, mailing, and staffing and costs incurred in soliciting donations, memberships, and grants. Dividing a charity's average fundraising expenses by its average total functional expenses yields this percentage. We calculate the charity's average expenses over its three most recent fiscal years.
Source: IRS Form 990
Liabilities to Assets Ratio
1.6%
The Liabilities to Assets Ratio is determined by Total Liabilities divided by Total Assets (most recent 990).
Part of our goal in rating the financial performance of charities is to help donors assess the financial capacity and sustainability of a charity. As do organizations in other sectors, charities must be mindful of their management of total liabilites in relation to their total assets. This ratio is an indicator of an organization’s solvency and or long term sustainability. Dividing a charity's total liabilities by its total assets yields this percentage.
Source: IRS Form 990
Fundraising Efficiency
$0.24
The amount spent to raise $1 in charitable contributions. To calculate a charity's fundraising efficiency, we divide its average fundraising expenses by the average total contributions it receives. We calculate the charity's average expenses and average contributions over its three most recent fiscal years.
Source: IRS Form 990
Working Capital Ratio
0.78 years
Determines how long a charity could sustain its level of spending using its net available assets, or working capital, as reported on its most recently filed Form 990. We include in a charity's working capital unrestricted and temporarily restricted net assets, and exclude permanently restricted net assets. Dividing these net available assets in the most recent year by a charity's average total expenses, yields the working capital ratio. We calculate the charity's average total expenses over its three most recent fiscal years.
Source: IRS Form 990
Program Expense Growth
-28.79%
We compute the average annual growth of program expenses using the following formula: [(Yn/Y0)(1/n)]-1, where Y0 is a charity's program expenses in the first year of the interval analyzed, Yn is the charity's program expenses in the most recent year, and n is the interval of years passed between Y0 and Yn.
Source: IRS Form 990
Governance
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990 that the organization has these governance practices in place.
Sources Include: IRS Form 990
| Governance: | |
|---|---|
| Independent Voting Board Members ... (More) | |
| No Material Diversion of Assets ... (More) A diversion of assets – any unauthorized conversion or use of the organization's assets other than for the organization's authorized purposes, including but not limited to embezzlement or theft – can seriously call into question a charity's financial integrity. We check the charity's last two Forms 990 to see if the charity has reported any diversion of assets. If the charity does report a diversion, then we check to see if it complied with the Form 990 instructions by describing what happened and its corrective action. This metric will be assigned to one of the following categories:
| |
| Audited Financials Prepared by Independent Accountant ... (More) Audited financial statements provide important information about financial accountability and accuracy. They should be prepared by an independent accountant with oversight from an audit committee. (It is not necessary that the audit committee be a separate committee. Often at smaller charities, it falls within the responsibilities of the finance committee or the executive committee.) The committee provides an important oversight layer between the management of the organization, which is responsible for the financial information reported, and the independent accountant, who reviews the financials and issues an opinion based on its findings. We check the charity's Form 990 reporting to see if it meets this criteria.
| Partial |
| Does Not Provide Loan(s) to or Receive Loan(s) From Related Parties ... (More) | |
| Documents Board Meeting Minutes ... (More) | |
| Distributes 990 to Board Before Filing ... (More) | |
| Compensates Board ... (More) |
Policies
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990, or for some metrics on the charity's website, that the organization has these policies in place.
Sources Include: IRS Form 990 and organization's website
| Policies: | |
|---|---|
| Conflict of Interest ... (More) | |
| Whistleblower ... (More) | |
| Records Retention and Destruction ... (More) | |
| CEO Compensation Process ... (More) | |
| Donor Privacy ... (More) Donors can be reluctant to contribute to a charity when their name, address, or other basic information may become part of donor lists that are exchanged or sold, resulting in an influx of charitable solicitations from other organizations. Our analysts check the charity's website to see if the organization has a donor privacy policy in place and what it does and does not cover. Privacy policies are assigned to one of the following categories:
The privacy policy must be specific to donor information. A general website policy which references "visitor" or "user" personal information will not suffice. A policy that refers to donor information collected on the website is also not sufficient as the policy must be comprehensive and applicable to both online and offline donors. The existence of a privacy policy of any type does not prohibit the charity itself from contacting the donor for informational, educational, or solicitation purposes. (Less) |
Transparency
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990, or for some metrics on the charity's website, that the organization makes this information easily accessible.
Sources Include: IRS Form 990 and organization's website
| Transparency: | |
|---|---|
| CEO Salary Listed on 990 ... (More) | |
| Board of Directors Listed on Website ... (More) | |
| Key Staff Listed on Website ... (More) | |
| Audited Financial Statements on Website ... (More) | |
| Form 990 Available on Website ... (More) |
Additional Information
Unscored
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Total Revenue and Expenses
This chart displays the trend of revenue and expenses over the past several years for this organization, as reported on their IRS Form 990.
Salary of Key Persons
Presented here are this organizations key compensated staff members as identified by our analysts. This compensation data includes salary, cash bonuses and expense accounts and is displayed exactly how it is reported to the IRS. The amounts do not include nontaxable benefits, deferred compensation, or other amounts not reported on Form W-2. In some cases, these amounts may include compensation from related organizations. Read the IRS policies for compensation reporting
Suzanne M. Sayfie, Executive Director
$66,000 (1.75% of Total Expenses)
Plus $252,028 of Compensation from Affliates
Marc A. Buoniconti, President
$10,416 (0.28% of Total Expenses)
Plus $176,666 of Compensation from Affliates
Current CEO and Board Chair can be found in the Leadership & Adaptability report below.
Source: IRS Form 990 (page 7), filing year 2020
Business Master File Data
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:
Gifts, grants, or loans to other organizations (BMF activity code: 602)
Foundation Status:
Organization which receives a substantial part of its support from a governmental unit or the general public 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) (BMF foundation code: 15)
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)
Data Sources: IRS Forms 990
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 view this organization's Forms 990 on the IRS website (if any are available).
Pandemic Response
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.
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis reported being impacted by COVID-19 in the following ways:
Program Delivery
Fundraising Capacity
Revenue
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's operations financially:
Donations to our organization declined by 18%. We applied for and received a PPP loan which allowed us to maintain our staff.
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's delivery of programs:
Due to social distancing we were unable to conduct any human subject in person programs. These programs are slowly starting up again.
How this organization adapted to changing conditions caused by COVID-19:
We held fundraising events virtually including our Annual Sports Legends Dinner while we were unable to host in person events. We made available exercise and activities programs virtually via our website and social media to keep our constituents engaged and active during the time that we needed to remain socially distanced.
Innovations the organization intends to continue permanently after the pandemic:
We intend to continue our virtual exercise and activity programs since they were so well received and can be accessed from any location.
Historical Ratings
| Date Published | Form 990 FYE | Overall Score | Overall Rating |
| Rating Version: 2.1 | |||
| 8/3/2021 | 2019 | 84.42 | |
| 12/23/2020 | 2019 | 83.30 | |
This organization received multiple star ratings within this fiscal year, due to an update to its Accountability and Transparency data and/or the receipt of an amended Form 990. | |||
| 6/1/2019 | 2018 | 89.38 | |
| 8/1/2018 | 2017 | 90.51 |  |
| 9/1/2017 | 2016 | 94.14 | |
| 12/1/2016 | 2015 | 89.04 | |
| 11/1/2016 | 2015 | 85.84 | |
| 6/1/2016 | 2014 | 84.00 | |
| Rating Version: 2.0 | |||
| 10/1/2015 | 2014 | 88.37 | |
| 7/1/2014 | 2013 | 87.69 | |
| 10/1/2013 | 2012 | 72.95 |  |
| 5/1/2012 | 2011 | 82.02 | |
| 9/20/2011 | 2010 | 68.40 |  |
| Rating Version: 1.0 | |||
| 11/24/2010 | 2009 | 80.08 | |
| 2/1/2009 | 2008 | 87.94 | |
| 4/1/2008 | 2007 | 85.36 | |
| 4/1/2007 | 2006 | 85.04 | |
| 5/1/2006 | 2005 | 82.42 | |
| 2/1/2005 | 2004 | 87.35 | |
Previous: Finance & Accountability / Next: Leadership & Adaptability
Impact & Results
This score estimates the actual impact a nonprofit has on the lives of those it serves, and determines whether it is making good use of donor resources to achieve that impact.
Impact & Results Score
Not Currently Scored
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis cannot currently be evaluated by our Encompass Rating 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.
Do you work at The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis? Join the waitlist for an updated Impact & Results score.
Additional Information
Unscored
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Largest Programs
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis reported its three largest programs on its FY 2019 Form 990 as:
$2,780,859
Spent in most recent FY
96%
Percent of program expenses
Raised Money for Research & Education
$51,963
Spent in most recent FY
1%
Percent of program expenses
Marketing & Public Relation
$37,040
Spent in most recent FY
1%
Percent of program expenses
Wheelchair Donation Program
Previous: Impact & Results / Next: Culture & Community
Leadership & Adaptability
This score 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.
Leadership & Adaptability Score
100
out of 100
The score earned by The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis is a passing score. This score has no effect on the organization's Star Rating.
Encompass Rating V4 provides an evaluation of the organization's Leadership & Adaptability through the nonprofit organization submitting a survey response directly to Charity Navigator.
Leadership & Adaptability Report
100
of 100 points
Mission
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization’s mission
Committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again, the Buoniconti family established The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis in 1992, devoted to assisting The Miami Project achieve its national and international goals. In 1985, Barth A. Green, MD and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Nick Buoniconti helped found The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis after Nick's son, Marc, sustained a spinal cord injury during a college football game. Today, the Miami Project is the world's largest, most comprehensive spinal cord injury research center, housed in the Lois Pope LIFE Center, a Center of Excellence at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. The Miami Project's international team of more than 200 scientists and clinicians take innovative approaches to the challenge of spinal cord injury.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Vision
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization’s vision.
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis exists to rid the world of the devastation caused by spinal cord and brain injuries, allowing millions worldwide to walk again and regain lost function and abilities. The strategic goals that The Buoniconti Fund supports to help make that statement a reality is to raise the funds needed to ensure that the researchers at The Miami Project have the most cutting edge and effective tools in order to conduct and implement clinically relevant research studies, therefore leading to cures. The Buoniconti Fund also makes sure that the resources are in place for The Miami Project to retain and hire the leading minds in the neuroscience field. Finally, through innovative fundraising and awareness events and campaigns, The Buoniconti Fund keeps at the forefront the messaging that paralysis does not discriminate, and that through our efforts cures for spinal cord injuries can and must be found.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Strategic Goals
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking and goal setting through sharing their most important strategic goals.
Goal One: Raise funds to allow the expansion of Spinal Cord Injury and Brain Injury research and clinical trials.
Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.
Goal Two: Educating the public about Spinal Cord (SCI) and Brain Injury (TBI) Research Programs and clinical Trials. Work with Lobbyist to obtain Federal and State funding for SCI and TBI Research nationally.
Goal Type: This goal reflects our commitment to further our advocacy work for our organization and or cause area.
Goal Three: The Fund/Project evaluate research programs for efficacy towards our goal of improving the lives of those with SCI and TBI. At times, decisions are made to end an ineffective area of research .
Goal Type: Focus on core programs to achieve mission and scale back on programs not seen as core.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Leadership Development
The nonprofit provides evidence of investment in leadership development
Describe an investment in leadership
At the Board Level, we provide updated scientific reports so they are up to date with current research.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Mobilizing for Mission
The nonprofit provides evidence of leadership through focusing externally and mobilizing resources for the mission.
This organization mobilizes for mission in the following ways:
Strategic Partnerships
Thought Leadership
Raising Awareness
Community Building
Policy Advocacy
What are this organization’s external mobilizaton efforts?
The Fund regularly engages in partnerships with other nonprofits to raise funds and awareness for the cause. The researchers supported by The Fund present at dozens of conferences around the world and publish in the neighborhood of two hundred peer reviewed research papers and manuscripts. Our education team participates in many spinal cord injury support group meetings and fields hundreds of calls, email and web inquiries about the care and treatment of loved ones. We offer a Summer Research Program to educate students about Neuroscience. The Fund utilizes marketing initiatives, like the Darrell Gwynn Wheelchair Challenge, to engage individuals and corporations in our cause as well as social media to provide information about SCI and TBI research. The Buoniconti Fund actively engages, through lobbyists and other counsel, local, state and federal policy makers to advocate for our cause. These efforts resulted in the creation of Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Story of Adaptability
The nonprofit has an opportunity to tell the story of how the organization adapted to tremendous external changes in the last year.
This past year and a half was a tremendous challenge for everyone. Those living with paralysis and their caregivers were exceptionally challenged to help their loved ones. A few major initiatives we undertook to keep our stakeholders and the scientific community informed and engaged was to completely revamp our website to make it easier to navigate and find information. Through our website and social media, we posted one on one interviews with our scientific team in order to share information about their research. We’ve also created an extensive video library that includes these interviews and many other pertinent scientific talks and presentations. The researchers also moved all of their in-person exercise and mobility sessions on-line so the paralysis community could continue to remain active, while they remained safe at home. Currently these are shared via the website and social media with sessions every day, and many days that have multiple offerings to help maintain activity levels. Many of these sessions were recorded over the past year so that there are always activities, live and recorded, available to those who want to participate. We’ve also distributed, in digital format, a home workout guide for our friends in wheelchairs and their loved ones. On the fundraising side, we initially moved most of our events to a virtual platform in order to remain connected to our supporters and friends, while continuing to raise the much needed funds to support the research efforts. Our longest standing and largest fundraiser, the Great Sports Legends Dinner, was successfully moved to the virtual platform last year and is scheduled to be produced in the same way this year. There were multiple other smaller fundraising events throughout the past 18 months that were also moved to the virtual realm with much success. We anticipate a hybrid approach to the events going forward until more is known about the latest direction of the pandemic and the safest ways to proceed.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Additional Information
Unscored
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Organization Leadership
Marc A Buoniconti
President
Nicholas A. Buoniconti III
Chairman
Previous: Leadership & Adaptability
Culture & Community
This score provides an assessment of the organization's culture and connectedness to the community it serves. Learn more about how and why we rate Culture & Community.
Culture & Community Score
Not Currently Scored
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis is currently not eligible for a Culture & Community score because we have not received its Constituent Feedback or Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion data. Nonprofit organizations are encouraged to fill out the How We Listen and Equity Practices sections of their Candid profile.
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.
Culture & Community Report
Unscored
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Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
This organization has not provided information regarding the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices it is presently implementing. As such, the organization has not earned a score on this metric. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations implementing effective DEI policies and practices can enhance a nonprofit's decision-making, staff motivation, innovation, and effectiveness.
Methodology
We are utilizing data collected by Candid to document and assess the DEI practices implemented by the organization. Nonprofit organizations are encouraged to fill out the Equity Strategies section of their Candid profiles to receive a rating.
Learn more about the methodology.
Constituent Feedback
Constituent Feedback and Listening Practice data are not available for this organization. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations that engage in inclusive practices, such as collecting feedback from the people and communities they serve, may be more effective.
Methodology
We've partnered with Candid to survey organizations about their feedback practices. Nonprofit organizations can fill out the How We Listen section of their Candid profile to receive a rating.
Learn more about the methodology.
Analysis and Research
Like the overall Encompass Rating System, the Culture & Community Beacon is designed to evolve as metrics are developed and ready for integration. Below you can find more information about the metrics we currently evaluate in this beacon and their relevance to nonprofit performance.
Constituent Feedback
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
