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Tannery World Dance & Cultural Center

EIN 90-0826298 · Santa Cruz, CA

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

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood81 out of 100GovernanceFair61 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

Tannery World Dance & Cultural Center (TWDCC) facilitates a working home for professional world & contemporary dance artists, while providing dance education that is committed to access, equity and excellence.

Income
$613,836
Spending
$565,346
Spent on programs
69%
Reserves
3.7 months of spending
Largest source of income
fees for its services, 56%
Employees
14
Volunteers
65
Highest pay
$92,622, executive dir.

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

Good: 81 out of 100. Higher than 58% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).

  • Reserves

    20 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 3.7 months of spending.

  • Debt

    16 of 20

    It owes 21% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 8% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 7% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    69% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 32 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

Fair: 61 out of 100. Higher than 34% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    7 of 7 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    0 of 8

    Reports no written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    0 of 7

    Reports no written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    0 of 5

    Reports that it does not keep 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

    6 of 15

    Its accounts were not audited or reviewed 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 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 (1)
  1. $390,202 spent. TWDCC provides a dance and cultural center with programs falling under three categories: youth dance training program, the Diaspora Performance Project, and serving as a community cultural center.Through each of these programs we provide a working home for professional world and contemporary dance artists and affordable and equitable dance education and cultural space for Santa Cruz County Residents.Our Youth Program offers exceptional dance training to over 200 local youths aged 3-18, including weekly dance classes during the school year, four week-long summer Camps, and multiple weeks of summer Intensives highlighting Modern and Contemporary dance as well as dance film-making.TWDCC also has six youth pre-professional performing dance companies that are built on the foundation of training, leadership and discipline. The TWDCC youth program provides a dance and cultural center that has become a second home to many of our students. We currently offer full andpartial need-based scholarships to about 20% of our youth students, including scholarships to every child who lives at the Tannery Arts Center where we are located. This year we provided 41 dance scholarships to under served students in our community worth $55,696.In 2025 TWDCC continued to support our Diaspora Performance Project (DPP) Resident Artists. Since 2018, we have supported selected professional dancers who have immigrated to Santa Cruz from their country of origin. This year, the five Resident Artists representing the African Diaspora from the countries of Congo, Cuba, Haiti, Senegal and Burkina Faso. TWDCC supported an African DanceConference by providing free studio use, advertising/promotional support, administrative support, and 20 full scholarships for Black adult dancers. We also continue to support these amazing artists in our community with grant writing support, free studio space to hold weekly public classes, free studio space to hold rehearsals for upcoming projects, and performance opportunities throughout the year.In 2025, TWDCC continued to produce public dance performances and festivals for the Santa Cruz community, returning with the Winter Dance Festival and the Deep Roots Dance Festival. We also host artistic and dance events in our space year-round. Through these community conversations, audiences and participants have opportunities to watch, engage, and learn from performances, curated festivals, artist talks and community dance classes. We estimate reaching about 4500 audience members andparticipants through these events.

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

  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 November 6, 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 December 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 October 2016.

    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 November 4, 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.