Eversight
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
Points to look into
- Raising each dollar of donations cost 55 cents.
These come from the organization's own tax return. There may be a good explanation; ask the charity.
What it says it does
Eversight's mission is to restore sight and prevent blindness through the healing power of donation, transplantation and research. Blinding eye diseases affect 80 million Americans. That means millions of people cannot see their loved ones, drive to work or read the newspaper on a Sunday morning. Their vision loss results in an economic impact of $51.4 billion every year in the United States alone. Eversight envisions a world without blindness-a world where all mothers can see their children and all children can grow up to lead independent, productive lives through the gift of sight. To make vision a reality for all, Eversight continuously works to expand its reach, connect more effectively with communities in need and provide the gift of sight to everyone.
- Income
- $34.0 million
- Spending
- $30.6 million
- Spent on programs
- 79%
- Reserves
- 7.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 90%
- Employees
- 187
- Volunteers
- 64
- Highest pay
- $337,411, president & ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 68 out of 100.
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 7.6 months of spending.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 47% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 10% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 11% on the year before.
Spending floor
0 of 1579% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 55 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100.
Independent board
25 of 2515 of 15 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, 2024, 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)
- $23.0 million spent. RESORING SIGHT Eversight continues to take meaningful steps toward transforming the future of vision care by supporting sustainable eye banking infrastructure and providing priceless clinical education. In 2024, Eversight provided the gift of sight to more than 10,200 people across the United States and around the world. Eversight provided 59 corneas for sight-restoring transplants gratis or at a reduced fee for uninsured patients.Eversight's work began in 1947 with the establishment of the fourth eye bank in the United States, then known as the Illinois Eye-Bank. Over time, nonprofit eye banks were established in every state to meet the critical demand for corneal tissue to treat preventable blindness.In 1985, the Illinois Eye-Bank and Michigan Eye-Bank formed a partnershipone that would earn a reputation for clinical excellence made possible by some of the finest medical directors, staff and board members in the eye banking field. The success of the organization attracted affiliations with other regional eye banks forming one of the largest networks of eye banks in the U.S. In 2015, the network became known as Eversight, all working together as a unified operation to deliver the highest quality services to surgeons and their patients and to continue to grow our impact around the world.Eversight provided more than 14,900 tissues for transplantation, research and education globally in 2024. We worked or placed tissue with physicians and researchers in 34 countries and facilitated training for 918 clinicians. Together with all our partnersadvocates, donor families, transplant recipients, surgeons, Lions, fellow eye banks, healthcare leaders, philanthropic supporters and many otherswe were able to make vision a reality for more people worldwide.
- $193,609 spent. FINDING A CURE In the pursuit of eliminating blinding eye diseases, Eversight established the Eversight Center for Vision and Eye Banking Research in Cleveland, Ohio, to provide leading ophthalmology researchers with the resources they need to find cures and treatments for eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma. Eversight provided more than 4,700 tissues for research and education purposes in 2024. Our in-house research team also provided Eversight partners with valuable research and development services and pioneered new eye banking practices.Since 2014, the Eversight researchers have authored 50 publications and given 34+ presentations at international conferences. The team published six publications in 2024 on: comparing cornea storage medias, perceptions of cornea and eye donation, automated counting and density of donor endothelial cells, protocol for corneal stromal stem cell cultivation, using trypan blue for cell viability after preloading DMEK grafts, and docosahexaenoic acid in diabetic humans and mice. With our many academic partners, Eversight researchers have contributed to over 250 peer-reviewed scientific papers that have garnered 6,300 citations and counting.Eversight has a longstanding track record of research and development, having awarded more than $4 million in grants to date that stimulate pioneering clinical and basic science research aiming to develop new ways to restore sight, prevent blindness and ultimately help patients live life to the fullest. Since 1980, our Eye & Vision Research Grant Program has supported researchers at leading academic medical institutions including Harvard, Tufts, Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve, University of Michigan, Northwestern and more. By design, Eversight's grant program provides critical, early-stage funding that is intended to drive foundational research and discovery. Many of these projects have stimulated larger-scale studies and won further financial support from the National Institutes of Health.In the 2025 funding cycle, Eversight awarded four grants at Loyola University Chicago, University of Houston, University of Illinois Chicago and University of Michigan to advance studies to investigate developing a novel drug evaluation system to stimulate blood vessel growth experimentally using factors that have been linked to the pathophysiology of both wAMD and PDR; enhancing limbal stem cell preservation; understanding the biomechanics of keratoconus by looking at the composition and microstructure of normal human and keratoconus corneal extracellular matrix; and advancing therapies for ocular surface squamous neoplasia. Each year, recipients are selected by an independent review panel of academic researchers and ophthalmologists. This distinguished panel awards proposals that encourage meaningful scientific inquisition and align with Eversight's mission to restore sight and prevent blindness through the healing power of donation, transplantation and research.
- $1.1 million spent. SUSTAINABLE INTERNATIONAL IMPACTEversight works to eliminate corneal blindness worldwide through eye bank development, clinical training and tissue provision. With more than 75 years of eye banking expertise, we deliver both short- and long-term solutions to transform the lives of more than 12 million people suffering from corneal blindness globally. In 2024, Eversight International provided more than 4,200 tissues for transplant and worked with surgeons in 33 countries outside the United States, making the gift of sight possible for many in need. Eversight provided 76 cornea tissues for sight-restoring transplants gratis or at a reduced rate for medical missions and uninsured patients outside the United States.In medically underserved areas, Eversight Global Development fosters authentic relationships with local leaders to establish culturally informed eye donation frameworks and sustainable eye banking infrastructure. Our experienced team offers vital clinical training and education to eye surgeons and eye bank technicians on the latest clinical methods, improving access to life-changing transplants. Through the incredible generosity of our donors and donor families, Eversight Global Development also provides corneal tissue from the United States for transplant and research globally, providing hope for the future and restoring sight to patients in need. Our global mission is informed by and aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with particular attention given to: #3 Good Health and Well-being, #4 Quality Education, #8 Decent Work and Economic Growth, #10 Reduced Inequalities and #11 Sustainable Cities & Communities. According to the World Health Organization, every dollar spent on improving eye health in underdeveloped areas generates a four-fold return on investment. To address systemic unmet need, Eversight actively works with medical professionals, governments, vision health organizations and other NGOs in regions lacking eye banks and infrastructure, including United Arab Emirates, Pakistan and South Korea. With proven eye banking and technical training practicesand having played a part in the elimination of the U.S. cornea transplant waiting listEversight is uniquely qualified to work with countries lacking transplant programs to help them establish national networks for eye banking and cornea donation with culturally appropriate donation models and state-of-the-art clinical capabilities.Globally, an estimated 2.2 billion people are impacted by blindness and visual impairment. Ninety percent of vision-impaired people live in low- and middle- income countries. Approximately one billion of these individuals are coping with blindness or visual impairment that can be characterized as preventable or not sufficiently addressed. Vision loss results in substantial economic impact worldwide due to the inability of people who are vision impaired to contribute to their fullest in their communities. Eversight envisions a world without blindnessa world where all people in every community can lead independent, productive lives through the gift of sight. While providing for immediate global cornea transplant needs with U.S. donor tissue, Eversight continues to address the global burden by empowering international communities to take meaningful, sustainable steps every day to make vision a reality for all.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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 September 7, 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 September 30, 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 September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since September 1976.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 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 7, 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.