Chicago Horticultural Society
81% goes to programs $16 to raise $100 Strong reserves
Chicago Horticultural Society is a 501(c)(3) organization based in Glencoe, Illinois, registered in 1949, with $68,147,549 in FY2024 revenue. CharityIndex grades it A, and it directs about 81% of spending to programs.
1000 Lake Cook Rd, Glencoe, IL, 60022 EIN 36-2225482 Since 1949
Revenue (FY2024)
$68.1M
▼ 11.4% vs prior year
Environment median: $250K
Expenses (FY2024)
$73.4M
Net assets
$293.8M
Employees
865
CharityIndex rating
One independent A+ to F grade from four published criteria, each scored separately from IRS filings and combined by weight.
A
AProgram efficiency40% of the rating81% to programs · $16 to raise $100
Measures how much of every dollar spent actually reaches programs, plus what it costs to raise $100 of donations. The worse of the two measures sets the letter (85%+ to programs is an A; under $15 to raise $100 is an A), averaged over the three most recent filings. For Chicago Horticultural Society: 81% to programs · $16 to raise $100 earns a A on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
B+Financial health25% of the rating48 mo reserves · -8% margin
Measures whether the organization is built to last: how many months its reserves would cover expenses (3+ months earns an A-range score, but hoarding 5+ years of budget is capped) and whether it runs a surplus or a deficit. For Chicago Horticultural Society: 48 mo reserves · -8% margin earns a B+ on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
A+Governance25% of the rating6 of 6 checks met
Checks how the organization is run, from its own Form 990: an independent board majority, a board of five or more, conflict-of-interest, whistleblower and document-retention policies, and independently audited financials. The share of disclosed checks that pass sets the letter. For Chicago Horticultural Society: 6 of 6 checks met earns a A+ on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
A+Transparency10% of the rating5 of 5 disclosure signals
Counts five disclosure signals: a recent filing, a mission statement, program descriptions, a listed website, and the full expense breakdown. More disclosure, better letter. For Chicago Horticultural Society: 5 of 5 disclosure signals earns a A+ on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
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Mission
We cultivate the power of plants to sustain and enrich life. the chicago horticultural society operates the chicago botanic garden on land owned by the forest preserve district of cook county.
What they do
Visitor services: 1,300,000 people visited the garden in 2024, from throughout the chicago area, the midwest, the nation and the world. the garden features a wide variety of indoor and outdoor events, activities, programming and exhibitions. the garden also hosts dozens of flower shows and sales, and is the site of educational programming for visitors of all ages and weekend family classes.
Plant conservation - the garden is recognized as an important player in international plant conservation and a leader in ornamental plant development. its plant breeding, evaluation, and introduction efforts are creating new and improved plants for midwest gardens, and its division of plant science and conservation is working on the most pressing environmental issues of our time, including invasiveness, loss of plant species biodiversity, and habitat conservation.
Educational programs - through the joseph regenstein, jr. school of the chicago botanic garden and a variety of educational and community outreach programs, the garden seeks to become the nation's preeminent teaching garden, with programming for students of all ages, including camp cbg (for ages 2-12), nature preschool, and science first, windy city harvest youth farm, and college first (for middle and high school students). college students and post-graduates participate in various intern programs, some in partnership with area universities. finally, hundreds of classes, workshops, symposia, and eleven professional certificate programs are available through the joseph regenstein, jr. school. each year approximately 150,000 are reached through these programs.
Contact & location
- Address
- 1000 Lake Cook Rd, Glencoe, IL, 60022
- City
- Glencoe
- State
- Illinois
- Category
- Environment
- Subcategory
- Botanical Gardens & Horticulture
- Phone
- …
- Website
- …
Financial trends
Revenue grew from $52.0M (FY2013) to $68.1M (FY2024) across 12 reported years.
Financial snapshot
Financial health & position (FY2024)
Liabilities $65.3MNet assets $293.8M
Operating margin
-7.7%
Spent more than it raised in the latest fiscal year.
Total assets
$359.1M
Total liabilities
$65.3M
Net assets
$293.8M
Salaries & benefits
$39.9M
54% of expenses
Board members
74
74 independent
Financials by year
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Expenses | Net assets | Total assets | Form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $68,147,549▼11.4% | $73,382,562▲5.0% | $293,793,946▲5.0% | $359,100,527▲3.9% | 990 |
| 2023 | $76,930,745▼0.2% | $69,918,513▲15.3% | $279,826,836▲11.9% | $345,474,602▲9.3% | 990 |
| 2022 | $77,057,735▲6.5% | $60,660,427▲13.3% | $249,977,028▼6.6% | $316,160,584▼5.1% | 990 |
| 2021 | $72,376,611▲35.1% | $53,561,911▲15.8% | $267,732,015▲11.8% | $333,124,052▲6.9% | 990 |
| 2020 | $53,583,619▼39.3% | $46,241,769▼5.5% | $239,452,470▲6.4% | $311,583,095▲7.5% | 990 |
| 2019 | $88,318,689▲79.1% | $48,907,247▲1.9% | $225,015,053▲20.4% | $289,912,332▲16.4% | 990 |
| 2018 | $49,317,007▼0.9% | $47,979,832▼1.6% | $186,911,256▼4.2% | $249,029,271▼1.4% | 990 |
| 2017 | $49,757,988▼0.8% | $48,755,048▲3.7% | $195,173,731▲5.8% | $252,541,559▲3.9% | 990 |
| 2016 | $50,149,476▲0.8% | $47,026,301▲2.4% | $184,555,533▲2.3% | $242,961,269▲0.7% | 990 |
| 2015 | $49,740,250▼24.8% | $45,901,974▲10.0% | $180,348,299▲1.1% | $241,209,469▲1.5% | 990 |
| 2014 | $66,185,119▲27.3% | $41,730,474▲4.3% | $178,455,833▲15.2% | $237,726,000▲11.6% | 990 |
| 2013 | $51,973,972 | $40,010,257▲1.7% | $154,864,656▲16.8% | $212,984,483▲10.4% | 990 |
| 2012 | — | $39,358,680▲2.8% | $132,591,006▲6.9% | $192,860,986▲5.1% | 990 |
| 2011 | — | $38,289,266▼1.1% | $124,008,672▼5.2% | $183,463,419▼1.4% | 990 |
| 2010 | — | $38,733,212 | $130,840,974 | $186,070,075 | 990 |
Original Form 990 PDFs (the Form column) are served by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, as filed with the IRS. Create a free account to download the CSV report.
Leadership & compensation (FY2024)
Highest-paid: Jean Franczyk — $502,878 (0.69% of total expenses)
| Name | Title | Hours/week | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jean Franczyk | President & Ceo | 40 | $502,878 |
| Fred Spicer | Executive Vp & Director | 40 | $334,862 |
| Paul Rafac | Executive Vp & Cfo | 40 | $333,226 |
| Ivan Adames | Chief Development Officer | 40 | $314,341 |
| Matthew Arran Carver | Interim Strategic Systems and Reporting | 40 | $300,718 |
| Aida Giglio | Vice-president, Human Resources | 40 | $271,358 |
| Jennifer Schwarz | Vice-president, Community Education | 40 | $236,782 |
| Gwen Vanderburg | Vice-president, Marketing and Communication | 40 | $225,126 |
| Kayri Havens | Vice-president, Science & Academic Programs | 40 | $209,390 |
| Carmen Vergara | Vice-president, Community Partnerships Wch | 40 | $185,731 |
| Patrick S Herendeen | Sr. Director, Ecology and Conservation | 40 | $179,036 |
| Patricia M Shanahan | Associate Vice President, Development | 40 | $173,899 |
| Timothy D Johnson | Sr. Director, Horticulture | 40 | $157,145 |
| Moonjung Kim-fiddler | Associate Vp, Talent Acquisition and Hr | 40 | $154,770 |
| Alan J Rouse | Board Member | 2 | — |
| Andrew Sinclair | Chair, Finance & Investment | 2 | — |
| Anita M Sarafa | Board Member | 2 | — |
| Anita M Tyson | Board Member | 2 | — |
| Ann Balusek | Board Member | 2 | — |
| Anne Leventry | Board Member | 2 | — |
Top vendors & contractors (FY2024)
| Contractor | Services | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Sony Music Entertainment | Event Production | $3,996,796 |
| A-1 Roofing | Construction | $2,294,513 |
| Datalish | It Services | $799,401 |
| Frost Lighting | Construction | $711,324 |
| Prescient Solutions | It Services | $540,859 |
Grants received · $30.6M total
155 grants to Chicago Horticultural Society totaling $30.6M, reported by foundations on their Schedule I filings — showing the 15 most recent.
| Grantmaker | Purpose | Year | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donald Danforth Plant Science Center | Research | 2024 | $254,985 |
| Charities Aid Foundation America | Charitable donation | 2024 | $109,439 |
| Morton Arboretum | Managing genetic diversity in botanic garden collections | 2024 | $70,494 |
| Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund For Wealth Management Inc | Environment & animal protection | 2024 | $59,500 |
| American Endowment Foundation | Environmental | 2024 | $45,300 |
| American Online Giving Foundation Inc | General support | 2024 | $39,777 |
| Ayco Charitable Foundation | Environment & animal protection | 2024 | $38,000 |
| United Way of Metropolitan Chicago Inc | Program support | 2024 | $32,539 |
| Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc | Unrestricted general support | 2024 | $15,000 |
| American Gift Fund | Operations | 2024 | $5,300 |
| T Rowe Price Program For Charitable Giving Inc | Multiple | 2024 | $5,100 |
| National Philanthropic Tr | Education | 2023 | $2,203,050 |
| The Chicago Community Trust | General support for programs, operations and other charitable purposes | 2023 | $501,618 |
| Robert R Mccormick Foundation | Veteran internship program at cantigny and the chicago botanic garden | 2023 | $412,000 |
| Ncrc Community Development Fund Inc | Illinois coronavirus fiscal recovery funds | 2023 | $250,000 |
Grants made · $120K in FY2022
1 grant totaling $120K in FY2022. All grants made by Chicago Horticultural Society →
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Vote Yes For Clean Air Clean Water and Wildlife Nfp | Contribution to support ballot initiative | $120,000 |
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Frequently asked questions
- Is Chicago Horticultural Society a legitimate nonprofit?
- Yes. Chicago Horticultural Society is a 501(c)(3) organization registered with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service under EIN 36-2225482, based in Glencoe, Illinois. Donations are tax-deductible.
- What is Chicago Horticultural Society's EIN?
- Chicago Horticultural Society's Employer Identification Number (EIN) is 36-2225482.
- How much revenue does Chicago Horticultural Society report?
- Chicago Horticultural Society reported $68,147,549 in total revenue on its fiscal year 2024 IRS Form 990 filing.
- How much of Chicago Horticultural Society's spending goes to programs?
- Chicago Horticultural Society spends about 81% of its total expenses on programs, based on its latest IRS Form 990.
- What financial grade does Chicago Horticultural Society have?
- CharityIndex grades Chicago Horticultural Society A, based on program efficiency and fundraising cost.
- How much does Chicago Horticultural Society's highest-paid employee make?
- The highest reported compensation on Chicago Horticultural Society's latest Form 990 is $502,878, paid to Jean Franczyk (President & Ceo).
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Explore more
Data for Chicago Horticultural Society (EIN 36-2225482) comes from the IRS Business Master File and e-filed Form 990 returns, via CharityIndex. Figures reflect what the organization reported to the IRS for each fiscal year.