Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
Points to look into
- Raising each dollar of donations cost 52 cents.
These come from the organization's own tax return. There may be a good explanation; ask the charity.
What it says it does
MOCA'S MISSION- ART NOW, IN PROGRESS - EMBODIES OUR NATURE AS A LIVING, ADAPTIVE PLATFORM FOR ARTISTIC EXPERIMENTATION, PUBLIC EXCHANGE, AND CIVIC CONNECTION. OUR VISION - ARTISTS & ART LEAD US TO THE UNFAMILIAR, WHERE WE OPEN AND CONNECT TO NEW POSSIBILITIES - IS BOTH REGULARLY ACHIEVABLE AND PERSISTENTLY ASPIRING. ARTISTS AND AUDIENCES ARE JOINTLY CENTRAL TO OUR WORK, PARTNERS WITH US IN USING ART NOW FOR INQUIRY, EXPRESSION, DIALOGUE, INTERPRETATION, AND APPLICATION BEYOND OUR WALLS AND INTO THE WORLD.
- Income
- $2.0 million
- Spending
- $3.6 million
- Spent on programs
- 59%
- Reserves
- 10.2 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 77%
- Employees
- 54
- Volunteers
- 49
- Highest pay
- $188,415, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending July 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 48 out of 100. Higher than 19% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 10.2 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 1% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 82% of income.
Income trend
0 of 15Income fell 29% on the year before.
Spending floor
0 of 1559% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 52 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending July 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 25% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2528 of 28 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
0 of 7Reports no written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
0 of 10Did not give 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 July 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 (1)
- $2.1 million spent. FOUNDED IN 1968 BY MARJORIE TALALAY, NINA SUNDELL, AND AGNES GUND AS THE NEW GALLERY, MOCA WAS ESTABLISHED TO INTRODUCE CLEVELAND AUDIENCES TO EMERGING AND EXPERIMENTAL CONTEMPORARY ART. OVER NEARLY SIX DECADES, THE ORGANIZATION HAS EVOLVED INTO A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED, NON-COLLECTING CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM, PRESENTING AND COMMISSIONING NEW AND RECENT WORK BY MORE THAN 4,000 ARTISTS AND ENGAGING MILLIONS OF AUDIENCE MEMBERS THROUGH EXHIBITIONS, PROGRAMS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND OUTREACH. SINCE OPENING ITS UNIVERSITY CIRCLE BUILDING IN 2012, MOCA HAS SERVED AS A KEY CULTURAL ANCHOR WITHIN ONE OF CLEVELAND'S MOST ACTIVE CULTURAL, EDUCATIONAL, AND HEALTHCARE NEIGHBORHOODS.IN EARLY FY25, MOCA ARTICULATED THREE IMPACT OBJECTIVES TO ALIGN WITH OUR UPDATED MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES AND TO EXPRESS THE CONSISTENT GOALS THAT GUIDE OUR WORK ACROSS FISCAL YEARS. THEIR DEFINITIONS DESCRIBE BOTH WHAT MOCA DOES AND THE OUTCOMES WE SEEK TO ACHIEVE. AGAINST THESE OBJECTIVES, WE ESTABLISH SPECIFIC METRICS TO MEASURE SUCCESS, IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT, AND STRENGTHEN AREAS OF IMPACT. OUR EXHIBITIONS, ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVES, SPECIAL EVENTS, PARTNERSHIPS, STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS, AND OUTREACH EFFORTS ARE HOW WE PURSUE THESE GOALS. TOGETHER, THESE OBJECTIVES GUIDED MOCA'S WORK THROUGHOUT 2025 AND DEFINED THE OUTCOMES OF OUR EFFORTS:1. PURSUE THE "WHYS" OF OUR SHARED WORLD: CREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR MUTUAL EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTIVE EXCHANGE IN ORDER TO FOSTER NEW CONNECTIONS, INCREASE COGNITIVE FLEXIBILITY AND LEARNING AGILITY, AND UPLIFT OUR COLLECTIVE HUMANITY.KEY 2025 INITIATIVES INCLUDED MORE THAN 20 MOCA SATURDAY WORKSHOPS, DEVELOPED WITH PARTNERS SUCH AS DESIGNEXPLORR AND STEM-FOCUSED HIGH SCHOOLS, THAT SUPPORTED HANDS-ON CREATIVITY FOR FAMILIES. MOCA ALSO DELIVERED 15 OFF-SITE PROGRAMS IN SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY CENTERS, INCLUDING COLLABORATIVE YOUTH PROJECTS WITH THE CENTER FOR ARTS-INSPIRED LEARNING'S TEEN COUNCIL. PARTNERSHIPS WITH ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS LINKING EMPLOYMENT, ABILITIES AND POTENTIAL (LEAP) AND THE CUYAHOGA COUNTY BOARD OF DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES SUPPORTED THE CO-CREATION OF INCLUSIVE PROGRAMS, INCLUDING SENSORY SUNDAYS AND PAID INTERNSHIPS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. IN ADDITION, MOCA PILOTED WHEELS OF WONDER AT UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS RAINBOW BABIES & CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL, PROVIDING HANDS-ON ART EXPERIENCES AND MUSEUM ACCESS FOR IMMUNOCOMPROMISED CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES.2. PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE: ADVANCE EXPERIMENTATION BY ARTISTS AND AUDIENCES IN ORDER TO STRENGTHEN THE CAPACITY FOR INNOVATION AND CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING, EXPAND CONCEPTS OF QUALITY AND MEANING, AND MODEL STRONG IMAGINATION FOR CHANGE.HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2025 INCLUDED DEAR, AN EXHIBITION CO-PRESENTED WITH BIRTHING BEAUTIFUL COMMUNITIES THAT CELEBRATED THE ROLE OF DOULAS IN ADVANCING HEALTH EQUITY. MOCA PRESENTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS BY HARMINDER JUDGEHIS FIRST US MUSEUM EXHIBITIONAND GALA PORRAS-KIM, MOUNTED SHORTLY AFTER HER HEINZ AWARD RECOGNITION AND BEFORE HER SUBSEQUENT DESIGNATION AS BOTH A US ARTISTS FELLOW AND MACARTHUR FELLOW. THE MUSEUM ALSO PRESENTED KELLI CONNELL'S DOUBLE LIFE, DEVELOPED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PROGRESSIVE, WHICH EXPLORED IDENTITY AND SELFHOOD THROUGH MORE THAN TWO DECADES OF COLLABORATION WITH A SINGLE MODEL. IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PROGRESSIVE, MOCA ADDITIONALLY HOSTED THE PUBLIC DEBUT OF BEVERLY SEMMES' MONUMENTAL INSTALLATION THE DRESSES. SUMMER EXHIBITIONS BY CLOTILDE JIMNEZ AND ERYKAH TOWNSENDBOTH ARTISTS' FIRST MUSEUM EXHIBITIONSFEATURED NEW COMMISSIONS AND NATIONALLY DEBUTING WORKS. JIMNEZ'S PROJECT WILL CONTINUE BEYOND THE EXHIBITION THROUGH THE GROTTO, AN EXPERIMENTAL OPERA THAT MOCA WILL PRESENT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A LEADING MUSIC ORGANIZATION IN 2027. FINALLY, MAGGIE MENGHAN CHEN'S BODY BUILDING EXERCISE COMBINED PERFORMANCE, SPIRITUALITY, AND THE CONNECTIVE POWER OF DIGITAL CULTURE TO CREATE AN AUDIENCE-INTERACTIVE ARTWORK CENTERED ON OPTIMISM, SOLIDARITY, AND JOY. PRESENTED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN AN IMMERSIVE FORMAT, THE WORK ENGAGED THOUSANDS OF VISITORS THROUGH MOVEMENT, PARTICIPATION, AND SHARED EXPERIENCE.3. PROPEL CLEVELAND'S COSMOPOLITAN CHARACTER: PROVOKE AND FEED CLEVELAND'S SOPHISTICATED CULTURAL CAPITAL IN ORDER TO ALIGN WITH GLOBAL ART AND CREATIVE INDUSTRIES, DRIVE AMBITIOUS RELATIONSHIPS AND PLACEMAKING, AND BOLSTER THE REGIONAL ECONOMY.IN 2025, TWO FREE EXHIBITION OPENING CELEBRATIONSFEATURING ARTIST TALKS, MAKER ACTIVITIES, AND LIVE MUSICEACH ATTRACTED MORE THAN 1,000 ATTENDEES. MOCA ALSO LAUNCHED MOCA MEDIA, A NEW PLATFORM ENCOMPASSING VIDEO, PODCASTS, BLOGS, AND DIGITAL ARCHIVES THAT SPOTLIGHTS ARTISTS AND CULTURAL LEADERS WHILE BRINGING CONTEMPORARY PERSPECTIVES FROM CLEVELAND AND BEYOND TO BROADER AUDIENCES. THE MUSEUM FURTHER EXPANDED INTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAMS SUCH AS MOCA CONNECT AND CURATED EVENTS CENTERED ON FASHION, MUSIC, FILM, FOOD, AND DESIGN. TOGETHER, THESE GATHERINGS CONNECTED HUNDREDS OF PARTICIPANTS THROUGH CONTEMPORARY CULTURE, STRENGTHENING CLEVELAND'S CREATIVE ECOSYSTEM AND SOCIAL VITALITY.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending July 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 October 13, 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 July 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 October 1974.
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 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.