LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY FOUNDATION Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY FOUNDATION

EIN 95-6132185 · Arts, Culture & Humanities (A116)

What they do

OUR MISSION is to INSPIRE WONDER, DISCOVERY and RESPONSIBILITY for OUR NATURAL and CULTURAL WORLDS. THIS is ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH PERMANENT and TRAVELING EXHIBITS, PUBLIC PROGRAMMING and EDUCATIONAL and RESEARCH PROGRAMS.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $64.00 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 leaders53 people are listed in the latest report.

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

Money made simple

54.99%of revenue went to mission work64.0% of expenses · Program services

8.77%of revenue went to fundraising10.2% of expenses

$85.94spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

22.18%of revenue went to management and office costs25.8% of expenses

$6.71in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

30.5%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 $560,723 for LORI BETTISON-VARGA (PRESIDENT & 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 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$84,474,155

Mission workProgram services$46,451,90454.99% of revenue64.0% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$18,737,73422.18% of revenue25.8% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$7,407,7948.77% of revenue10.2% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$11,876,72314.06% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$72,597,43285.94% 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: 64.0% mission · 25.8% management · 10.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 85.94% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 70.6% mission · 19.2% management · 10.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 87.00% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 72.7% mission · 15.4% management · 11.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 73.81% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 73.4% mission · 15.2% management · 11.4% fundraisingTotal expenses: 69.78% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 75.1% mission · 12.8% management · 12.1% fundraisingTotal expenses: 94.71% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 77.7% mission · 13.0% management · 9.4% fundraisingTotal expenses: 76.95% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 76.1% mission · 13.7% management · 10.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 86.55% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 76.3% mission · 14.8% management · 8.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 96.01% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$84,474,155

Expenses$72,597,432

Annual surplus $11,876,723 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)$46,451,904 · 64.0% of expenses

Management and office costs$18,737,734 · 25.8% of expenses

Fundraising$7,407,794 · 10.2% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$84,474,155

Expenses$72,597,432

Assets$487,050,097

Income$114,677,662

Contributions$25,757,024

Mission work (program services)$46,451,904

Fundraising$7,407,794

Management and general$18,737,734

Executive compensation (total)$1,997,077

Stocks and bonds$143,313,607

Accounting fees$206,826

Investing fees$1,442,642

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

LORI BETTISON-VARGAPRESIDENT & DIRECTOR · 44 hrs/week $560,723Base $513,411 · Other $47,312

LESLIE NEGRITTOCFO, COO, SECRETARY · 44 hrs/week $429,238Base $398,738 · Other $30,500

LUIS CHIAPPESR. VP, RESEARCH & COLLECTIONS · 44 hrs/week $426,282Base $395,782 · Other $30,500

PAUL BESSIRECHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER · 44 hrs/week $417,099Base $395,782 · Other $21,317

SHANA MATHURCHIEF STRATEGY & EXTERNAL RELATIONS OFFICER · 44 hrs/week $356,333Base $325,833 · Other $30,500

NOOSHIN NATHANCHIEF TALENT OFFICER · 44 hrs/week $348,187Base $317,737 · Other $30,450

MAURICE OCHOAASSOC VP, OPERATION, FACILITIES · 44 hrs/week $216,651Base $188,392 · Other $28,259

STEPHEN MANUEL DE LA ROSAASSOC VP, FINANCIAL PLANNING · 44 hrs/week $216,300Base $201,054 · Other $15,246

LAUREL ELIZABETH DICKOWVP, LEARNING & ENGAGEMENT · 44 hrs/week $215,659Base $199,684 · Other $15,975

CHEBON DEE MARSHALLCHIEF OF STAFF · 44 hrs/week $198,015Base $193,063 · Other $4,952

MARA NAIDITCHASSOC VP, STRATEGIC CONTENT MKTG · 44 hrs/week $197,569Base $185,566 · Other $12,003

SABRINA BURRISASSOC VP, IDEA INITIATIVES · 44 hrs/week $182,485Base $177,170 · Other $5,315

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 (53)

LORI BETTISON-VARGAPRESIDENT & DIRECTOR

LESLIE NEGRITTOCFO, COO, SECRETARY

LUIS CHIAPPESR. VP, RESEARCH & COLLECTIONS

PAUL BESSIRECHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER

SHANA MATHURCHIEF STRATEGY & EXTERNAL RELATIONS OFFICER

NOOSHIN NATHANCHIEF TALENT OFFICER

MAURICE OCHOAASSOC VP, OPERATION, FACILITIES

STEPHEN MANUEL DE LA ROSAASSOC VP, FINANCIAL PLANNING

LAUREL ELIZABETH DICKOWVP, LEARNING & ENGAGEMENT

CHEBON DEE MARSHALLCHIEF OF STAFF

MARA NAIDITCHASSOC VP, STRATEGIC CONTENT MKTG

SABRINA BURRISASSOC VP, IDEA INITIATIVES

NAOMI NAKAGAMA-KURATATRUSTEE

NAOMI RAINEY-PIERSONTRUSTEE

RICHARD GENOWTRUSTEE

NANCY EDWARDSTRUSTEE

NORAMAE MUNSTERTRUSTEE

MIKAELA RANDOLPHTRUSTEE

PETER SCRANTONTRUSTEE

MARTY PRECIADOTRUSTEE

RICHARD KELLERTRUSTEE

RICHARD MOSSTRUSTEE

RITA KAMPALATHTRUSTEE

ROBERT PROCOPTRUSTEE

STACEY ARMATOTRUSTEE

SUSAN DEVERTRUSTEE

VICTORIA APARECETRUSTEE

VINCE LAWLERTRUSTEE

WALTER MARKSTRUSTEE

WILLIAM M GARLAND IIITRUSTEE

JENNA PERLSTEINTRUSTEE

ALEX KENDALLVP, BOARD OF TRUSTEES

ANISSA BALSONTRUSTEE

CHARLENE DIMAS-PEINADOTRUSTEE

CURTIS C JUNGPRESIDENT, BOARD OF GOVERN

CYNTHIA TELLESTRUSTEE

DEBORAH KALLICKTRUSTEE

DIANE G MEDINATRUSTEE

ESTHER CHAOTRUSTEE

GREGG MARTINTRUSTEE

HEATHER DE ROOSCHAIR OF THE BOARD

JEFF STIBELTRUSTEE

MICHELLE BLACKTRUSTEE

JOAN PAYDENTRUSTEE

JOSEPH LUMARADATRUSTEE

JUN XUTRUSTEE

KAREN A HOFFMANTRUSTEE

KEITH BERGLUNDTRUSTEE

LORRI KAMPFNERTRUSTEE

MARGARET LEVYTRUSTEE

ALAN EPSTEINTRUSTEE

MEGAN MCGOWAN-EPSTEINPRESIDENT, BOARD OF TRUSTEES

MICHAEL H JONESTRUSTEE

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1966
Location: 900 EXPOSITION BLVD, LOS ANGELES, CA 90007-4057
County: Los Angeles
In care of: LESLIE NEGRITTO
Primary officer: LESLIE NEGRITTO, CFO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Phone(213) 763-3442

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: July 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: SINGERLEWAK LLP
NTEE classification: Arts, Culture & Humanities (A116)
IRS tax category: Other Grantmaking and Giving Services