AMERICAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

AMERICAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY

EIN 21-0735173 · Astronomy (U31)

What they do

THE AMERICAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY (AAS), ESTABLISHED IN 1899, is THE MAJOR ORGANIZATION of PROFESSIONAL ASTRONOMERS IN NORTH AMERICA. THE BASIC OBJECTIVE of THE AAS is to PROMOTE THE ADVANCEMENT of ASTRONOMY and CLOSELY RELATED BRANCHES of SCIENCE THE MEMBERSHIP (APPROXIMATELY 7,000) ALSO INCLUDES PHYSICISTS, MATHEMATICIANS, GEOLOGISTS, ENGINEERS and OTHERS WHOSE RESEARCH INTERESTS LIE WITHIN THE BROAD SPECTRUM of SUBJECTS NOW COMPRISING CONTEMPORARY ASTRONOMY.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $80.20 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders19 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

79.58%of revenue went to mission work80.2% of expenses · Program services

$99.18spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

19.60%of revenue went to management and office costs19.8% of expenses

$1.18in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

10.5%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $627,742 for KEVIN B MARVEL (EXECUTIVE OFFICER). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$21,867,046

Mission workProgram services$17,402,33479.58% of revenue80.2% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$4,285,91119.60% of revenue19.8% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations0.00% of revenue0.0% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$178,8010.82% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$21,688,24599.18% of revenue

Gray means reported revenue left after expenses for this filing year. It does not necessarily mean cash sitting in a bank account.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 80.2% mission · 19.8% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 99.18% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 78.9% mission · 21.1% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 114.12% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 81.1% mission · 18.9% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 101.25% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 78.9% mission · 21.1% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 96.13% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 79.1% mission · 20.9% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 102.32% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 78.7% mission · 21.3% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 107.97% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 83.7% mission · 16.3% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 88.53% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 82.6% mission · 17.4% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 109.79% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$21,867,046

Expenses$21,688,245

Annual surplus $178,801 Revenue was higher than expenses for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$17,402,334 · 80.2% of expenses

Management and office costs$4,285,911 · 19.8% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$21,867,046

Expenses$21,688,245

Assets$25,528,282

Income$21,973,671

Contributions$2,286,816

Mission work (program services)$17,402,334

Grants given$813,799

Average grant$25,431

Management and general$4,285,911

Executive compensation (total)$1,100,356

Stocks and bonds$13,599,704

Accounting fees$81,711

Investing fees$33,915

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

KEVIN B MARVELEXECUTIVE OFFICER · 35 hrs/week $627,742Base $480,809 · Other $146,933

ETHAN VISHNIACEDITOR-IN-CHIEF · 35 hrs/week $332,811Base $278,153 · Other $54,658

KELLY E CLARKCHIEF FINANCIAL AND OPERAT · 35 hrs/week $300,738Base $256,185 · Other $44,553

JOEL PARRIOTTDIRECTOR OF PUBLIC POLICY/ · 35 hrs/week $271,455Base $237,981 · Other $33,474

RODNEY NENNERDIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC PART · 35 hrs/week $191,347Base $147,915 · Other $43,432

DIANE FRENDAKDIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP SERVICES · 35 hrs/week $161,162Base $112,723 · Other $48,439

MICHELE STEVENSONDIRECTOR OF MEETINGS & OPERATIONS · 35 hrs/week $137,871Base $113,618 · Other $24,253

SYLVIA MARTINEZDIRECTOR OF HR · 35 hrs/week $136,055Base $122,129 · Other $13,926

JACK BURNSTREASURER · 2 hrs/week $40,000

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (19)

KEVIN B MARVELEXECUTIVE OFFICER

ETHAN VISHNIACEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

KELLY E CLARKCHIEF FINANCIAL AND OPERAT

JOEL PARRIOTTDIRECTOR OF PUBLIC POLICY/

RODNEY NENNERDIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC PART

DIANE FRENDAKDIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP SERVICES

MICHELE STEVENSONDIRECTOR OF MEETINGS & OPERATIONS

SYLVIA MARTINEZDIRECTOR OF HR

JACK BURNSTREASURER

GREGORY RUDNICKAT-LARGE TRUSTEE

LISA PRATOAT-LARGE TRUSTEE

KELSEY JOHNSONPAST PRESIDENT

ALICE K B MONETSECRETARY

GRANT TREMBLAYSENIOR VICE PRESIDENT

EDWIN BERGINTHIRD VICE PRESIDENT

DAWN GELINOSECOND VICE PRESIDENT

DARA NORMANPRESIDENT

DANIEL DALEAT-LARGE TRUSTEE

B ASHLEY ZAUDERER-VANDERLEYAT-LARGE TRUSTEE

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1988
Location: 1667 K ST NW STE 800, WASHINGTON, DC 20006-1681
County: District of Columbia
In care of: % DR ROBERT W MILKEY
Primary officer: KEVIN B MARVEL PHD, EXECUTIVE OFFICER

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Emailcommunications@aas.org Phone(202) 328-2010

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: January 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: SNYDER COHN PC
NTEE classification: Astronomy (U31)
IRS tax category: Astronomy
Grant-giving organization: Yes