Executive Compensation at the Horatio Alger Association

The Horatio Alger Association (HAA) is a tax-exempt, non-profit 501 (c) 3, HAA is based in Alexandria, Virginia.  The organization is overseen by 72 independent voting members (board members) of the governing body, although 75 are listed on the 2021 Form 990, which appears to be due to timing differences.  68 of the 75 board members (91%) are male while 7 of the 75 members (9%) are female.

HAA was named for the gilded age writer, Horatio Alger who wrote about impoverished boys who rose from their humble backgrounds through education and good works to higher echelons of society.  Consequently HAA awards need based scholarships and honors the achievements of those who have overcome adversity and obtained personal achievement and success throw perseverance.  At the heart of HAA is the firm belief in achieving the “American Dream” through the free-enterprise system.

In 2021, HAA reported total revenue of $20 million while expenses totaled $23 million with the largest expense reported to be grants ($13 million or 65% of revenue) followed by compensation.  14 employees received $2.45 million in compensation, which equates to an average of $175,000 each. However, only 5 employees received more than $100,000:

• $1,348,080:  Terrence J Giroux, Executive Director
• $  286,973:  Constantine G Katsaraskas, Director, Strategic Initiative
• $  260,974:  John B Thornburg, CFO
• $  232,555:  Kristin R Law, Director, Educational
• $  208,418:  Margaret Slipek, Manager, Editorial Services

The 5 most highly compensated employees received $2.3 million (or 94% of compensation) which means the remaining 9 employees received a total of $150,000 or an average of $17,000 each.  The most highly compensated employee was Terrence J Giroux, the Executive Director who received $1,348,080 in compensation in 2021.  Mr Giroux received nearly $10 million in compensation from 2017-2021:

• 2021:  $1,348,080
• 2020:  $1,270,209
• 2019:  $1,229,069
• 2018:  $1,185,041
• 2017:  $3,503,777

23 independent contractors received more than $100,000 in compensation with the five (5) most highly compensated reported to be:

• $552,717:  Linder & Associates, of Washington, DC for event management
• $471,271:  The Red Bank Film Company, of Red Bank, NJ for production, scripting, and research
• $330,000:  Destin Productions LLC, of Limassol, Cyprus for marketing campaign for tv
• $318,936:  Brian Communications, of Philadelphia, PA for public relations
• $288,801:  Custom Management Group, of Charlottesville, VA for scholarship review and processing

Two questions emerge based on the above information on independent contractors:

• Why did HAA use a company in Cyprus for a marketing campaign for tv?
• If HAA is paying Custom Management Group for scholarship review and processing, what is the Executive Director and staff doing?

To read the IRS Form 990 (2021), click here.