Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
60 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
27 people listed on the 990; $1.2M paid to officers and key staff.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laura Defina MD | $290,776 | $347,715 | $443,314 | $300,066 | $299,895 | $291,308 |
| Onyeka Nchege | — | — | — | — | — | $230,072 |
| Amy Johnson | — | — | — | — | $214,787 | $190,141 |
| Kayla Heath | $178,904 | $158,969 | $153,760 | $151,559 | $142,422 | — |
| Kerem Shuval | $126,792 | $151,582 | $139,568 | $119,610 | — | — |
| Beth Wright | $130,216 | $133,665 | $120,252 | $109,294 | $108,249 | $108,585 |
| Ben Willis | — | — | — | — | — | $126,696 |
| Shebronda Blackburn | — | — | — | — | — | $123,556 |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2Yes
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Promotes lifelong health and wellness through research and education.
Questions for The Cooper Institute
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Research
Provides evidence-based, scientific research on the impact of physical fitness through the cooper center longitudinal study ("CCLS"). The CCLS is the largest and longest running observational study with measured cardiorespiratory fitness in the world.
Youth Education
The institute is home to the NFL play 60 fitnessgram project ("NFL play 60"). NFL play 60 is a program supported by the NFL foundation, which encourages students to be physically active at least 60 minutes per day.
Public Advocacy
The institute serves as a trusted voice and resource to the public on the importance of healthy lifestyle choices through education about key research affecting public health. This enhances public awareness and solutions to improve physical activity and other healthy choices as well as creating healthier environments.
Youth Education
The institute is home to the NFL play 60 fitnessgram project ("NFL play 60"). NFL play 60 is a program supported by the NFL foundation, which encourages students to be physically active at least 60 minutes per day.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $10.5M | $2.1M | $8.4M | $14.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $4.2M | $3.9M | $387K | $21.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $2.1M | $3.8M | −$1.8M | $19.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $6.1M | $3.4M | $2.7M | $20.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $4.7M | $4.8M | −$51K | $19.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $4.8M | $5.9M | −$1.0M | $16.1M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (1 part)
Part VI · Governance 5 of 16 board members independent, 1 to look at
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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