Special Olympics Pennsylvania Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE MISSION OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS IS TO PROVIDE YEAR-ROUND SPORTS TRAINING AND COMPETITION IN A VARIETY OF OLYMPIC-TYPE SPORTS FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, GIVING THEM CONTINUING OPPORTUNITIES TO DEVELOP PHYSICAL FITNESS, DEMONSTRATE COURAGE, EXPERIENCE JOY, AND PARTICIPATE IN A SHARING OF GIFTS, SKILLS, AND FRIENDSHIP WITH THEIR FAMILIES, OTHER SPECIAL OLYMPICS ATHLETES, AND THE COMMUNITY.
- Income
- $12.4 million
- Spending
- $14.5 million
- Spent on programs
- 75%
- Reserves
- 6.2 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 71%
- Employees
- 80
- Volunteers
- 12,000
- Highest pay
- $306,344, president & ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 69 out of 100.
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 6.2 months of spending.
Debt
16 of 20It owes 20% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 17% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 3% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1575% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 15 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100.
Independent board
25 of 2526 of 26 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (5)
- $6.5 million spent. SPECIAL OLYMPICS PENNSYLVANIA (SOPA) CONTINUES TO EXPAND ITS REACH ACROSS THE COMMONWEALTH, DELIVERING YEAR-ROUND SPORTS TRAINING, COMPETITION, AND INCLUSIVE PROGRAMMING FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES. IN 2025, SOPA PROVIDED 30,350 PROGRAM EXPERIENCES ACROSS 1,109 TRAINING SITES, ENGAGING 15,167 UNIQUE PARTICIPANTS IN COMMUNITY AND SCHOOL-BASED PROGRAMS. THESE EXPERIENCES REFLECT MULTIPLE TOUCHPOINTS ACROSS A PARTICIPANT'S JOURNEY, INCLUDING SPORTS TRAINING, COMPETITION, SCHOOL-BASED PROGRAMMING, AND FITNESS INITIATIVES, DEMONSTRATING BOTH THE BREADTH AND DEPTH OF SOPA'S IMPACT. PROGRAMMING SPANS BOTH COMMUNITY-BASED SPORT OPPORTUNITIES AND INCLUSIVE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTS, ENSURING ATHLETES HAVE CONSISTENT ENGAGEMENT PATHWAYS REGARDLESS OF AGE OR ENTRY POINT.
- $1.9 million spent. SOPA ALSO PRIORITIZES LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY-BUILDING. IN 2025, 147 ATHLETES SERVED IN MEANINGFUL REGIONAL LEADERSHIP ROLES, CONTRIBUTING TO VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT, FUNDRAISING, AND PROGRAM ADVOCACY. ADDITIONALLY, 21 UNIFIED YOUTH LEADERSHIP SUMMITS ENGAGED 1,684 PARTICIPANTS, AND 315 UNIFIED CHAMPION SCHOOLS CLUBS SUPPORTED ONGOING INCLUSION AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT WITHIN SCHOOL COMMUNITIES. TOGETHER, THESE EFFORTS ADVANCE SOPA'S MISSION BY BUILDING INCLUSIVE COMMUNITIES WHERE INDIVIDUALS WITH AND WITHOUT INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES LEAD, COMPETE, AND GROW TOGETHER.
- $1.4 million spent. SOPA REMAINS A LEADER IN ADVANCING THE HEALTH AND WELLNESS OF INDIVIDUALS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES THROUGH DIRECT SERVICES AND STRUCTURED PROGRAMMING. IN 2025, THE ORGANIZATION DELIVERED 2,008 HEALTHY ATHLETES SCREENINGS AND ENGAGED 687 ATHLETES IN FITNESS-FOCUSED INITIATIVES. THESE SCREENINGS SERVE AS BOTH IMMEDIATE INTERVENTIONS AND ENTRY POINTS INTO ONGOING FITNESS AND HEALTH PROGRAMMING. FITNESS PROGRAMS CONTINUE TO DEMONSTRATE MEASURABLE OUTCOMES, INCLUDING: 19.27% IMPROVEMENT IN HIGH-RISK BMI RATES 27.42% IMPROVEMENT IN CARDIOVASCULAR ENDURANCE THESE IMPROVEMENTS REFLECT SUSTAINED ENGAGEMENT IN STRUCTURED FITNESS PROGRAMMING AND REINFORCE THE ROLE OF SPORT AS A CRITICAL TOOL FOR IMPROVING LONG-TERM HEALTH OUTCOMES.
- $1.1 million spent. SOPA CONTINUED TO DELIVER A ROBUST SCHEDULE OF COMPETITIVE OPPORTUNITIES AND INCLUSIVE SPORTS PROGRAMMING. IN 2025, THE ORGANIZATION HOSTED 1,366 COMPETITIONS ACROSS 26 SPORTS, INCLUDING BOTH TRADITIONAL SPECIAL OLYMPICS SPORTS AND UNIFIED SPORTS. THIS INCLUDES 7,240 ONE-DAY SPORTS EXPERIENCES, WHICH PROVIDE LOW-BARRIER ENTRY POINTS FOR NEW ATHLETES AND SCHOOLS WHILE EXPANDING AWARENESS AND PARTICIPATION ACROSS THE STATE. PARTICIPATION IN SCHOOL-BASED UNIFIED CHAMPION SCHOOLS (UCS) REMAINS A KEY DRIVER OF GROWTH, WITH 493 SCHOOLS ENGAGED AND 7,148 UCS ATHLETES PARTICIPATING ALONGSIDE UNIFIED PARTNERS. IMPORTANTLY, SOPA IS STRENGTHENING PATHWAYS FROM SCHOOL TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, ACHIEVING A 12.05% TRANSITION RATE OF UCS PARTICIPANTS INTO COMMUNITY-BASED PROGRAM, REINFORCING LIFELONG PARTICIPATION IN SPORT AND INCLUSION.
- VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT REMAINS CENTRAL TO SOPA'S IMPACT. IN 2025, 11,888 VOLUNTEERS SUPPORTED PROGRAMMING STATEWIDE, INCLUDING 3,243 SPORT VOLUNTEERS, 8,344 ONE-DAY VOLUNTEERS, AND 301 NON-SPORT VOLUNTEERS. THIS DIVERSE AND GROWING VOLUNTEER BASE POWERS COMPETITIONS, TRAINING, AND ATHLETE EXPERIENCES WHILE ALSO STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY AWARENESS AND INCLUSION. CONTINUED IMPROVEMENTS IN DATA TRACKING AND ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES ALLOW SOPA TO BETTER UNDERSTAND AND EXPAND ITS VOLUNTEER PIPELINE. THIS INCLUDES A GROWING PIPELINE OF YOUTH AND SCHOOL-BASED PARTICIPANTS WHO TRANSITION INTO ONGOING VOLUNTEER ROLES, STRENGTHENING LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF THE MOVEMENT.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since June 1979.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.
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