LINCOLN PARK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

LINCOLN PARK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY

EIN 36-2512404 · Animal-Related (D500)

What they do

LINCOLN PARK ZOO is DEDICATED to CONNECTING PEOPLE WITH NATURE BY PROVIDING A FREE, FAMILY-ORIENTED WILDLIFE EXPERIENCE IN THE HEART of CHICAGO and BY ADVANCING THE HIGHEST QUALITY of ANIMAL CARE, HORTICULTURE, EDUCATION, SCIENCE and CONSERVATION.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $87.00 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 leaders72 people are listed in the latest report.

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

Money made simple

76.19%of revenue went to mission work87.0% of expenses · Program services

6.38%of revenue went to fundraising7.3% of expenses

$87.61spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

5.04%of revenue went to management and office costs5.8% of expenses

$5.74in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

50.6%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 $539,651 for MEGAN ROSS (PRESIDENT/CEO). 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$50,519,973

Mission workProgram services$38,488,84576.19% of revenue87.0% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$2,546,4925.04% of revenue5.8% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$3,223,8946.38% of revenue7.3% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$6,260,74212.39% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$44,259,23187.61% 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: 87.0% mission · 5.8% management · 7.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 87.61% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 87.1% mission · 6.0% management · 6.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 76.32% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 87.6% mission · 5.9% management · 6.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 82.62% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 89.3% mission · 5.5% management · 5.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 62.46% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 92.3% mission · 4.3% management · 3.4% fundraisingTotal expenses: 172.62% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 88.2% mission · 6.2% management · 5.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 72.81% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 89.7% mission · 5.0% management · 5.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 97.56% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 86.9% mission · 5.4% management · 7.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 81.60% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$50,519,973

Expenses$44,259,231

Annual surplus $6,260,742 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)$38,488,845 · 87.0% of expenses

Management and office costs$2,546,492 · 5.8% of expenses

Fundraising$3,223,894 · 7.3% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$50,519,973

Expenses$44,259,231

Assets$253,968,470

Income$239,902,268

Contributions$25,583,104

Mission work (program services)$38,488,845

Fundraising$3,223,894

Grants given$1,602,473

Average grant$32,704

Management and general$2,546,492

Executive compensation (total)$1,057,093

Stocks and bonds$152,263,920

Accounting fees$64,199

Investing fees$172,690

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

MEGAN ROSSPRESIDENT/CEO · 40 hrs/week $539,651Base $500,929 · Other $38,722

RENA SOLANOCFO · 40 hrs/week $332,861Base $299,972 · Other $32,889

GINEVRA RANNEYVP OF DEVELOPMENT · 40 hrs/week $291,875Base $273,468 · Other $18,407

BRENDAN DALEYVP OF OPERATIONS · 40 hrs/week $202,874Base $176,860 · Other $26,014

MAUREEN LEAHYVP OF ANIMAL CARE AND HORTICULTURE · 40 hrs/week $197,180Base $174,519 · Other $22,661

DANA MURPHYVP OF LEARNING · 40 hrs/week $178,459Base $167,348 · Other $11,111

KATIE CRONINDIRECTOR OF ANIMAL WELFARE · 40 hrs/week $176,255Base $159,376 · Other $16,879

KEVIN BELLPRESIDENT EMERITUS / LIFE TRUSTEE $158,024

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 (72)

MEGAN ROSSPRESIDENT/CEO

RENA SOLANOCFO

GINEVRA RANNEYVP OF DEVELOPMENT

BRENDAN DALEYVP OF OPERATIONS

MAUREEN LEAHYVP OF ANIMAL CARE AND HORTICULTURE

DANA MURPHYVP OF LEARNING

KATIE CRONINDIRECTOR OF ANIMAL WELFARE

KEVIN BELLPRESIDENT EMERITUS / LIFE TRUSTEE

THOMAS F WALKER JRTRUSTEE

KANDACE LENTITRUSTEE

KELLY POWERS BARIATRUSTEE

LEE T MOORETRUSTEE

LUIS GUTIERREZTRUSTEE

LYNN JEKKALSTRUSTEE

MARCIA S KAMINSKYTRUSTEE

TRACY BROWNTRUSTEE

MAYARI PRITZKERTRUSTEE

TRACEY E BENFORDVICE CHAIR OF FINANCE

MICHAEL COLLINSTRUSTEE

MISSY DOLSKITRUSTEE

MYRA REILLYTRUSTEE

NEIL KAWASHIMATRUSTEE

OSCAR JOHNSONTRUSTEE

SUSAN L REGENSTEINTRUSTEE

POLLY ELDRINGHOFFTRUSTEE

RANDALL E MEHRBERGTRUSTEE

TAREK FADELTRUSTEE

RICHARD FEITLERTRUSTEE

RICHARD POULTONTRUSTEE

ROGER G HILL IITRUSTEE

RON MALLICOATTRUSTEE

RONALD DENARDTRUSTEE

SCOT PEPPERTRUSTEE

SHANNON SCHUYLERTRUSTEE

SUSAN SHERMAN DVMTRUSTEE

SHARIF WALKERTRUSTEE

SHARON SZAFRANSKITRUSTEE

SHARON ZACKFIATRUSTEE

CHARLES A BARONESECRETARY

ELIZABETH A KARLSONTRUSTEE

ELISABETH C MEEKERTRUSTEE

EDWARD C HAFFNERTRUSTEE

DENISE STEFAN GINASCOLTRUSTEE

DAVID P BOLGERTRUSTEE

DAVID L NICHOLSTRUSTEE

DAVID HEYMANTRUSTEE

CHRISTINE TIERNEYTRUSTEE

ELIZABETH A MIHASTRUSTEE

C JOHN MOSTOFITRUSTEE

BUCK BETTENTRUSTEE

BRIAN EGWELETRUSTEE

BRENDA PALMSTRUSTEE

BETSY ZIEGLERTRUSTEE

BARBARA MALOTT KIZZIAHTRUSTEE

BARBARA A HIGGINSTRUSTEE

JARED WHITETRUSTEE

ADAM NORDINTRUSTEE

K JAY WEAVERTRUSTEE

JOHN R ETTELSONTRUSTEE

JOHN M HOLMESTRUSTEE

JOHN H RODITRUSTEE

JOHN OXTOBYTRUSTEE

JOHN MCLINDENTRUSTEE

JASON MILLERTRUSTEE

KAREN STONE KAPLANTRUSTEE

J THOMAS HURVISTRUSTEE

IAN RADOMSKIVICE CHAIR

HIMANI ASHLEMANTRUSTEE

GREGORY Y PEARLMANTRUSTEE

GREG LEOSTRUSTEE

GAYLE LITTLETONTRUSTEE

FRANCESCA M EDWARDSONCHAIR

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1961
Location: 2001 N CLARK ST, CHICAGO, IL 60614-4712
County: Cook
In care of: MEGAN ROSS
Primary officer: MEGAN ROSS, PRESIDENT & CEO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Phone(312) 742-2000

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: April 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: PLANTE & MORAN PLLC
NTEE classification: Animal-Related (D500)
IRS tax category: Zoos and Botanical Gardens
Grant-giving organization: Yes