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Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art
Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art reported $29.2 million in revenue and $18.2 million in expenses for calendar year 2025. Of every $100 it spent, $81.44 went to program services, $10.81 to management and general costs and $7.75 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 66.2% of the total. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $523,908 (PRESIDENT & CEO). 9 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation. Revenue rose 152% between 2019 and 2025. Source: Form 990, 2025.
Where $100 of spending went
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $18MFor context, the median across 876 covered arts, culture & humanities charities: $79.98 programs, $13.89 management, $6.13 fundraising (medians computed separately, so they may not sum to $100).
Where $100 of revenue came from
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part VIII · total revenue $29MThe 990 scorecard · same measures for every charity, no grades
| Measure | 2025 | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Program services Part IX 25(B) ÷ 25(A) | 81.4% | 78.5% |
| Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A) | 10.8% | 13.6% |
| Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A) | 7.7% | 6.0% |
| Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h | $0.07 | $0.10 |
| Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12 | 66.2% | 57.5% |
| Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12 | 0.7% | 1.7% |
| Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12 | 20.1% | 20.8% |
| Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F | $523,908 | $385,706 |
| Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A) | 2.88% | 2.03% |
| People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2 | 9 | 8 |
| Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses | 45.7 | 36.6 |
| Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b | 38 of 38 | 100.0% |
A median is context, not a target: hospitals, universities, food banks and grantmakers spend in very different ways. What these measures can and can't tell you.
What the money paid for, in its own words
2025 · Form 990, Part III · the three largest programs by expenseArt, exhibitions, and programming: cheekwood maintains permanent collections focused on american art from the 18th to mid-20th centuries as well as monumental outdoor sculpture. The institution also hosts significant temporary exhibitions and interactive educational experiences for all ages to complement its permanent and traveling exhibitions, both in cheekwood's historic mansion and museum, and across the estate grounds. During 2025, cheekwood hosted robert indiana's "love" sculpture, one of the most celebrated works in the pop art movement, as part of its tradition to bring high-quality…
Restaurant, rentals & gift shop: cheekwood offers visitor amenities through its onsite cafe and gift shops. Visitors enjoy the convenience of food and beverages including in-cafe dining or takeaway options for picnics on the grounds. The gift shops offer educational and interpretive items focused on art and nature as well as items representing cheekwood's unique programs and estate offerings. Cheekwood also provides rental and catering facilities to further open cheekwood to the public through the hosting of meetings and events in its beautiful and inspiring environment
Highest reported compensation
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section A · roles as filed; names are in the filing, not here| Role | From this org | From related orgs | Other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRESIDENT & CEO Officer, 50.00 hrs/week | $505,449 | $0 | $18,459 | $523,908 |
| CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Officer, 50.00 hrs/week | $236,699 | $0 | $17,119 | $253,818 |
| CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Key employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $206,257 | $0 | $14,314 | $220,571 |
| VP OF MUSEUM AFFAIRS Highest compensated employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $137,038 | $0 | $13,174 | $150,212 |
| VP OF GARDENS & FACILITIES Highest compensated employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $130,213 | $0 | $14,768 | $144,981 |
| VP OF HUMAN RESOURCES Highest compensated employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $118,832 | $0 | $15,145 | $133,977 |
| VP OF EDUCATION & OUTREACH Highest compensated employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $113,950 | $0 | $11,245 | $125,195 |
| VP OF FACILITIES & CONSTRUCTION Highest compensated employee, 50.00 hrs/week | $114,597 | $0 | $4,760 | $119,357 |
9 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art (Part VII, line 2). Compensation of current officers, directors and key employees totaled $998K (Part IX, line 5).
7 years of filings
Form 990, Parts I, VII, IX and X · each row is that year's own filing, linkedGovernance answers, as filed
2025 · the organization's own yes/no answers; explanations, if any, are in Schedule O of the filing · what each means- Voting board members, and how many are independent Part VI, lines 1a–1b38 · 38 independent
- Audited financial statements Part XII 2bYes
- Conflict-of-interest policy Part VI 12aYes
- Whistleblower policy Part VI 13Yes
- Document retention policy Part VI 14Yes
- Independent process for top executive pay Part VI 15aYes
- Board given the 990 before filing Part VI 11aYes
- Family or business ties among insiders Part VI 2No
- Aware of a significant diversion of assets Part VI 5No
- Excess benefit transaction with an insider Part IV 25aNo
- Loans to or from insiders outstanding Part IV 26No
- Lobbying, or a 501(h) election in effect Part IV 4Yes
- Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18Yes
- Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bNo
- Employees Part I, line 5299
- Volunteers Part I, line 61,707
Largest outside contractors
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section B · businesses only| HASTINGS ARCHITECTURE Architecture services | $1,638,897 |
| OUTDOOR LIGHTING PERSPECTIVES LLC Lighting installation | $470,815 |
| RC MATTHEWS CONTRACTOR LLC Construction | $326,519 |
| HOLLAND & KNIGHT LLP Legal services | $158,392 |
| BARGE CIVIL ASSOCIATES LLC Civil engineer services | $125,138 |
Individuals listed as contractors are left out. 7 contractors were paid more than $100,000 in all.
Private foundation grants it received
25 private foundations reported grants to Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art totaling $652K on their tax year 2023 Form 990-PF returns. See which foundations, on WHOFUNDS.
Source: WHOFUNDS open grant graph, matched from Form 990-PF Part XV.
Correct a figure or respond
Every number above is copied from Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.
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Of every $100 Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art spent in 2025, $81.44 went to programs. The full breakdown, from its IRS Form 990:
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Questions people ask
How much of Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art's spending goes to programs?
In calendar year 2025, Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art reported that 81.4% of its $18.2 million in expenses went to program services, 10.8% to management and general and 7.7% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).
How much does Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art pay its top executive?
The largest total compensation Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art reported for one person in calendar year 2025 was $523,908, for the role of PRESIDENT & CEO (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).
Where does Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art get its money?
Of $29.2 million in revenue in calendar year 2025, 66.2% came from contributions and grants (including 0.7% from government grants) and 20.1% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).
Is Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art a registered charity?
The IRS lists EIN 62-0627921 as a 501(c)(3) organization (publicly supported organization (170(b)(1)(a)(vi))), and its records show contributions as tax-deductible. Form 990 filings on record here cover tax years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025. A filing shows what the organization reported; it doesn't by itself show whether a program works.
Sources
- 2025: Form 990 for calendar year 2025, object 202632059349300503 · read the filing
- 2024: Form 990 for calendar year 2024, object 202521789349300507 · read the filing
- 2023: Form 990 for calendar year 2023, object 202401909349301505 · read the filing
- 2022: Form 990 for calendar year 2022, object 202341809349301519 · read the filing
- 2021: Form 990 for calendar year 2021, object 202221829349301117 · read the filing
- 2020: Form 990 for calendar year 2020, object 202141799349301174 · read the filing
- 2019: Form 990 for calendar year 2019, object 202021849349300347 · read the filing
All filings for EIN 62-0627921: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.