Skip to the page content
Your donations
Passes our checks

Windber Research Institute

EIN 25-1877336 · Windber, PA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood81 out of 100GovernanceGood86 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

THE CHAN SOON-SHIONG INSTITUTE OF MOLECULAR MEDICINE AT WINDBER IS COMMITTED TO DISCOVERING MOLECULAR DIAGNOSTIC AND PROGNOSTIC BIOMARKERS AND DEVELOPING ADVANCED DISEASE PREVENTION MEASURES THAT WILL LEAD TO EARLY DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT, DECREASED DISEASE AND EDUCATION.

Income
$10.2 million
Spending
$8.8 million
Spent on programs
76%
Reserves
4.7 months of spending
Largest source of income
government grants, 96%
Employees
49
Volunteers
3
Highest pay
$549,518, former president and ceo

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Good: 81 out of 100. Higher than 75% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).

  • Reserves

    20 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 4.7 months of spending.

  • Debt

    16 of 20

    It owes 28% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 13% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 14% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    76% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Good: 86 out of 100. Higher than 22% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).

  • Independent board

    18 of 25

    4 of 4 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    0 of 7

    Reports no written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 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 (3)
  1. $1.8 million spent. APOLLO YEAR 4 - WRI HAS A LONG HISTORY OF COLLABORATING WITH WALTER REED NATIONAL MILITARY MEDICAL, INITIALLY FOCUSING ON THE CLINICAL BREAST CARE PROJECT (CBCP) AND NOW EXPANDING TO PAN-CANCER STUDIES WHICH NOW INCLUDES THE APOLLO PROJECT. WRL'S OVERARCHING ROLE FOR THE APOLLO PROJECT IS TO PROVIDE A CENTRAL BIOREPOSITORY FOR SAMPLE INVENTORY MANAGEMENT, SAMPLE PROCESSING, DISTRIBUTION AND LONG-TERM STORAGE. ADDITIONALLY, SAMPLE QUALITY WILL BE ASSESSED TO ENSURE SUITABILITY FOR RESEARCH. WRL'S INFORMATICS INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEM WILL BE USED TO ENHANCE CLINICOPATHOLOGIC DATA COLLECTION AND MANAGEMENT, SUPPORT MOLECULAR DATA MANAGEMENT, AND INTEGRATE AND RENDER DATA AVAILABLE FOR RESEARCH. THE BIOINFORMATICS TEAM WILL ANALYZE DATA TO UNCOVER MOLECULAR DIFFERENCES THAT CAN BE USED IN DISEASES CLASSIFICATION, BIOMARKER DISCOVERY AND EARLY DISEASES DETECTION.
  2. $1.7 million spent. BCCOE '22 - BREAST CANCER TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH CENTER OF EXCELLENCE. WRI HAS BEEN PROVIDING BIOBANKING, INFORMATICS INFRASTRUCTURE AND BIOINFORMATICS SERVICES TO CBCP FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS. THE BIOBANK AT WRI IS COLLEGE OF AMERICAN PATHOLOGIST (CAP) ACCREDITED, AND SERVES AS THE CENTRAL REPOSITORY FOR ALL THE CBCP BIOSPECIMEN COLLECTIONS. IN VIEW OF THIS, WE MAINTAIN THE HIGHEST INDUSTRY STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CBCP SAMPLE INVENTORY. TO DATE WE HAVE OVER 280,000 CBCP SAMPLE ALIQUOTS STORED IN OUR FACILITY AND MAINTAIN 24/7 MONITORING OF STORAGE FREEZERS AMONG OTHER QUALITY MEASURES. WE HAVE ESTABLISHED QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS THAT ENSURES SUSTAINED QUALITY OF THE STORED BIOSPECIMENS. THESE STANDARDS ARE IN ACCORDANCE WITH OUR ACCREDITATION STANDARDS AND ENSURED FOR ALL FUTURE COLLECTIONS.
  3. $909,122 spent. BCCOE '23 - BREAST CANCER TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH CENTER OF EXCELLENCE. WRI HAS BEEN PROVIDING BIOBANKING, INFORMATICS INFRASTRUCTURE AND BIOINFORMATICS SERVICES TO CBCP FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS. THE BIOBANK AT WRI IS COLLEGE OF AMERICAN PATHOLOGIST (CAP) ACCREDITED, AND SERVES AS THE CENTRAL REPOSITORY FOR ALL THE CBCP BIOSPECIMEN COLLECTIONS. IN VIEW OF THIS, WE MAINTAIN THE HIGHEST INDUSTRY STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CBCP SAMPLE INVENTORY. TO DATE WE HAVE OVER 280,000 CBCP SAMPLE ALIQUOTS STORED IN OUR FACILITY AND MAINTAIN 24/7 MONITORING OF STORAGE FREEZERS AMONG OTHER QUALITY MEASURES. WE HAVE ESTABLISHED QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS THAT ENSURES SUSTAINED QUALITY OF THE STORED BIOSPECIMENS. THESE STANDARDS ARE IN ACCORDANCE WITH OUR ACCREDITATION STANDARDS AND ENSURED FOR ALL FUTURE COLLECTIONS.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. 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.

  2. 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 October 13, 2026.

  3. 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.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since September 2001.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. 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 October 21, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.