THE ASSOCIATION FOR RESEARCH IN VISION AND OPHTHALMOLOGY Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

THE ASSOCIATION FOR RESEARCH IN VISION AND OPHTHALMOLOGY

EIN 34-0812556 · Education (B)

What they do

ARVO ADVANCES RESEARCH WORLDWIDE INTO UNDERSTANDING THE VISUAL SYSTEM and PREVENTING, TREATING and CURING ITS DISORDERS.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $60.40 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 2025The charity has a recent tax report to read.

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

They name their leaders26 people are listed in the latest report.

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

Money made simple

56.25%of revenue went to mission work60.4% of expenses · Program services

$93.10spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

36.84%of revenue went to management and office costs39.6% of expenses

$2.02in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

20.0%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

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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 $426,747 for IRIS M RUSH CAE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR). 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 2025

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$12,169,218

Mission workProgram services$6,845,74856.25% of revenue60.4% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$4,483,65336.84% of revenue39.6% of expenses

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

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$839,8176.90% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$11,329,40193.10% 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

2025CurrentExpense mix: 60.4% mission · 39.6% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 93.10% of revenue

2024Expense mix: 60.3% mission · 39.7% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 79.63% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 60.5% mission · 39.5% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 98.30% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 57.5% mission · 42.5% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 101.52% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 55.2% mission · 44.8% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 74.18% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 46.8% mission · 53.2% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 148.97% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 58.6% mission · 41.4% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 85.03% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 58.5% mission · 41.5% management · 0.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 97.33% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$12,169,218

Expenses$11,329,401

Annual surplus $839,817 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)$6,845,748 · 60.4% of expenses

Management and office costs$4,483,653 · 39.6% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$12,169,218

Expenses$11,329,401

Assets$22,921,004

Income$16,077,666

Contributions$2,433,861

Mission work (program services)$6,845,748

Grants given$25,000

Average grant$12,500

Management and general$4,483,653

Stocks and bonds$17,523,755

Accounting fees$56,428

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2025

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

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

IRIS M RUSH CAEEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · 38 hrs/week $426,747Base $387,245 · Other $39,502

JASON SPESSARD CAECHIEF OPERATING & FINANCIAL OFFICER · 38 hrs/week $302,728Base $277,401 · Other $25,327

DANIEL IGNASZEWSKIEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR-NAEVR AEVR · 38 hrs/week $292,486Base $266,601 · Other $25,885

TIMOTHY MAXEYCHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER · 38 hrs/week $256,265Base $231,991 · Other $24,274

LANCEY COWAN JD CAECHEIF OFFICER - MEETINGS & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT · 38 hrs/week $249,322Base $215,874 · Other $33,448

JULENE JOY CAECHIEF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER · 38 hrs/week $244,865Base $200,106 · Other $44,759

JONATHAN MALLETT PHDSENIOR DIRECTOR OF JOURNALS · 38 hrs/week $185,443Base $167,452 · Other $17,991

KATHERINE COXSR DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING · 38 hrs/week $174,845Base $150,744 · Other $24,101

ELIZABETH AUSTINDIRECTOR, MARKETING & MEMBERSHIP · 38 hrs/week $167,577Base $136,092 · Other $31,485

ROBERT CANASDIRECTOR, FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION · 38 hrs/week $159,055Base $136,777 · Other $22,278

J MARK PETRASH PHD FARVOEXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT · 4 hrs/week $50,000

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 (26)

IRIS M RUSH CAEEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

JASON SPESSARD CAECHIEF OPERATING & FINANCIAL OFFICER

DANIEL IGNASZEWSKIEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR-NAEVR AEVR

TIMOTHY MAXEYCHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER

LANCEY COWAN JD CAECHEIF OFFICER - MEETINGS & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

JULENE JOY CAECHIEF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER

JONATHAN MALLETT PHDSENIOR DIRECTOR OF JOURNALS

KATHERINE COXSR DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING

ELIZABETH AUSTINDIRECTOR, MARKETING & MEMBERSHIP

ROBERT CANASDIRECTOR, FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION

J MARK PETRASH PHD FARVOEXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

WEI LI MD PHDVICE PRESIDENT-ELECT

SRRINIVAS SADDA MD FARVOIMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT

SUSANA CHUNG OD PHD FAAO FARVOTRUSTEE

SOPHIE DENG MD PHD FARVOPRESIDENT

TERRI YOUNG MD PHD FARVOPRESIDENT-ELECT

TIEN WONG FRCS PHD FARVOVICE PRESIDENT-ELECT

AMANI FAWZI MD FARVOTRUSTEE

MATTHEW WILSON MDTRUSTEE

JUNKO HORI MD PHD FARVOTRUSTEE

JOSEPH DEMER MD PHD FARVOVICE PRESIDENT

GOLDIS MALEK PHD FARVOTRUSTEE

FRANK LOVICU PHD FARVOVICE PRESIDENT

ELISE MA MD PHDTRUSTEE, TRAINEE EX OFFICIO

C ROSS ETHIER PHD FARVOTREASURER

BRIAN GILGER DVM MS FARVOTRUSTEE

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1945
Location: 5515 SECURITY LN STE 500, ROCKVILLE, MD 20852-5034
County: Montgomery
In care of: % JASON SPESSARD
Primary officer: Jason Spessard, Chief Operating & Financial Officer

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Emailarvo@arvo.org Phone(240) 221-2900 Officer phone(240) 221-2916

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2025
Tax period began: January 1, 2025
Return type: 990
NTEE classification: Education (B)
IRS tax category: Education
Grant-giving organization: Yes