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Mclaughlin Research Institute for Biomedical Sciences

EIN 81-0459235 · Great Falls, MT

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

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood78 out of 100GovernanceStrong90 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

THE INSTITUTE'S MISSION IS TO IMPROVE HUMAN HEALTH THROUGH INNOVATIVE GENETIC RESEARCH AND EDUCATION. RESEARCH AT THE INSTITUTE FOCUSES ON UNDERSTANDING THE GENETIC CONTROL OF NORMAL DEVELOPMENT AND SUSCEPTIBILITY TO NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES USING THE MOUSE AS THE MODEL SYSTEM. THE INSTITUTE ALSO OFFERS RESEARCH INTERNSHIPS FOR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS.

Income
$3.9 million
Spending
$4.8 million
Spent on programs
88%
Reserves
10.6 months of spending
Largest source of income
government grants, 65%
Employees
37
Volunteers
0
Highest pay
$325,737, director/current president

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Good: 78 out of 100.

  • Reserves

    28 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 10.6 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 3% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    0 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 24% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 61% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    87% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 2 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 90 out of 100.

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    12 of 13 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

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    0 of 10

    Did not give 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, 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 (2)
  1. $4.2 million spent. DURING FISCAL YEAR 2024, THE INSTITUTE SCIENTISTS AND STAFF CONTINUED THEIR EFFORTS TO BETTER UNDERSTANDING THE CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE PROCESSES THROUGH INNOVATIVE GENETIC APPROACHES IN MURINE MODELS WHILE EXPANDING THE PROGRAM OF TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH TO SUPPLEMENT TREATMENT ADVANCES AND EDUCATION THROUGH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WITH STUDENT INTERNSHIPS. THE RESEARCH FOCUSED LARGELY ON THE MECHANISMS BEHIND THE PROPAGATION OF PROTEIN MISFOLDING IN DISEASES SUCH AS FRONTOTEMPORAL DEMENTIA, ALZHEIMER'S AND PRION DISEASES, AS WELL AS NOVEL TREATMENT APPROACHES. SUCH WORK INCLUDED PARTNERSHIPS WITH UP TO 11 COLLABORATORS AND 20 PROJECTS AMONG INVESTIGATORS WITH PARTNERSHIPS EXTENDING NATIONALLY TO NEW YORK, MASSACHUSETTS, NORTH CAROLINA AND CALIFORNIA WHICH RESULTANT SUBAWARDS CONTRIBUTED TO $712,800 OF NIH GRANT FUND SUPPORT AND $307,000 IN RESEARCH CONTRACTS. EFFORTS CONTINUED TOWARDS UNDERSTANDING ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE WITH PARTNERS AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY AND WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY; PRION DISEASES WITH PARTNERS AT THE BROAD AT HARVARD UNIVERSITY & PRION ALLIANCE. INVESTIGATORS CONTINUED CRITICAL WORK ON NOVEL TREATMENT DEVELOPMENT SCREENING THROUGH ONGOING COLLABORATION WITH PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES AND WELCOMED NEW COLLABORATIONS WITH LYDIAN ACCELERATOR & N-LOREM. THE INSTITUTE BEGAN NEW EFFORTS THROUGH NIH FUNDED GRANTS (AWARDED 2024) IN THE AMOUNT OF $2.9M/YEAR FOR FIVE YEARS TO LAUNCH THE NOVEL CENTER FOR INTEGRATED BIOMEDICAL AND RURAL HEALTH RESEARCH FOCUSED ON DISTRIBUTED RESEARCH SUPPORT FOR NEW INVESTIGATORS; $630,000/YEAR FOR FIVE YEARS OF NEUROINFLAMMATION IN ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE MODEL RESEARCH. ADDITIONAL NIH FUNDS THROUGH TRANSFER FROM CALPOLY AND DUKE UNIVERSITY SUPPORTED THE ONGOING INVESTIGATION OF TRANSCRIPTIONAL NETWORKS OF HUMAN PRIMORDIAL GERM CELLS WAS COMPLETED. A PORTION OF ARPA FUNDS, $150,000 WERE DISTRIBUTED TO THE INSTITUTE THROUGH MONTANA STATE AND CASCADE COUNTY PASSTHROUGH. THE INSTITUTE RECEIVED $1.02M IN CONTRIBUTIONS THAT INCLUDED $675,000 IN RESEARCH AND EDUCATION SUPPORT FROM AFFILIATE, TOURO UNIVERSITY. THESE FUNDS WERE UTILIZED TO SUPPORT ONGOING RESEARCH AS WELL AS FUNDAMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE SUPPORT.
  2. $31,050 spent. THE INSTITUTE HOSTED ANOTHER BUSY AND SUCCESSFUL SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROGRAM DISTRIBUTING A TOTAL OF $31,050 IN SCHOLARSHIPS TO HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS FOR 8-WEEKS OF BENCH SIDE RESEARCH & PRESENTATION. MEDICAL STUDENTS FROM NEIGHBORING TOURO COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE (MT) JOINED THE RESEARCH EFFORTS THROUGH TEMPORARY POSITIONS AS WELL AS FIRST ROTATION OF FOUR STUDENTS IN THE MEDICAL SCIENTIST TRAINING PROGRAM.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2024, 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 September 7, 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 September 30, 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 September 10, 2026.

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

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

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

    Recognized by the IRS since October 1994.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 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 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.