American Council on Exercise

Tax-deductible

San Diego, CA501(c)(3)Since 1986Recreation & SportsEIN 33-0123550

The nonprofit organization american council on exercise is committed to getting people moving.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
81¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 18 volunteers and 95 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

Before you give

FY2025 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average deficit $1.4M a year · 6% of revenue · last 5 filings
Concern: a surplus in 2 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
81%
of spending
Looks good: 81% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$3.2M
to officers and key staff · 16% of spending
Top officer’s pay higher than 82% of similar orgs
Fine: pay to officers and key staff is 16% of spending; 15% to 20%.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
<1 mo
of spending, in cash
Worth a look: 0.8 months of spending in cash; under 1.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $8K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$9.3M
63% of total assets
Fine: liabilities are 63% of assets; 50% to 65%.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
9
of 11 voting members
Looks good: 9 of 11 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$19.3M
-2% vs prior year
Spent
$19.7M
To programs
81%
Net assets
$5.6M
By yearFY2021–FY2025
Revenue
$19.3M
FY2025▼ -2%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2021$26.4M
FY2022$26.7M
FY2023$19.6M
FY2024$19.6M
FY2025$19.3M
Expenses
$19.7M
FY2025▼ -21%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2021$25.0M
FY2022$24.3M
FY2023$24.7M
FY2024$24.8M
FY2025$19.7M
Net assets
$5.6M
FY2025▼ -13%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2021$15.6M
FY2022$16.8M
FY2023$12.3M
FY2024$6.4M
FY2025$5.6M

From the FY2025 Form 990 (year ending June 2025) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jul 1986.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

81 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 81% · $15.9M Management & general 19% · $3.8M

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

Who runs it and what they're paid

18 people listed on the 990; $3.2M paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2024); the FY2025 filing did not itemize Part VII
President & Chief Executive Officer
$491,917Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Financial Officer
$434,601Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Operating Officer
$368,481Pt VII · Sec A
SVP, Online Business Technology
$344,659Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member & Staff
$343,645Pt VII · Sec A
Education Advisor Supervisor
$306,504Pt VII · Sec A
Health & Wellness Services
$295,927Pt VII · Sec A
Development & Strategic Partner
$295,435Pt VII · Sec A

Cedric Bryant’s $492K as President & Chief Executive Officer is at the 82nd percentile of top reported officer pay among 290 $10–100M recreation & sports nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021
Scott Goudeseune CEO——$605,193$645,204—
Scott Goudeseune$343,645$549,112——$628,229
Alex Mirnezam$434,601$401,759$498,001$440,756$469,890
Cedric Bryant$491,917$434,205$471,837$467,659$455,578
Amanda Cass$368,481$359,967$351,201$344,949$337,603
David Fischer$344,659$236,361$239,313$190,928$234,910
Graham Melstrand———$318,701$339,525
Graham Melstrand Evpcommunity$295,927$300,425$318,305——

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.

See American Council on Exercise executive salaries →

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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

Encourages people to be active and healthy through fitness education and resources.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until American Council on Exercise claims this page.

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3 program services account for $15.9M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Continuing Education and Renewals

Ace developed and updated approximately 40 education programs and courses, including the ace health and wellness summit: a holistic approach to mental health and mindful movement: coaching clients to become more active.

$8.3Mprogram expense
02

Certification and Preparatory Education

The education of well-qualified exercise professionals and health coaches is the foundation of the ace approach to get people moving. Ace develops, reviews, and maintains educational resources, study materials and training manuals and related exams.

$7.6Mprogram expense
03

Outreach

Ace continues to provide the public with science-based information to educate and encourage people from all walks of life to achieve sustainable health changes. In the past year, ace invested in original research, including youth sport coaches' knowledge of exercise physiology and related concepts.

$51Kprogram expense

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Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$8K

By the numbers

The FY2025 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$19.3M
Ln 12
Fees for servicesLn 2g$12.9M
Other incomeLn 4–11$5.5M
Investment incomeLn 3$811K
Money outPt IX
$19.7M
Ln 25
Programscol B$15.9M
Managementcol C$3.8M
Owns and owesPt X
$5.6M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$1.3M
Total assetsLn 16$14.9M
LiabilitiesLn 26$9.3M
PeoplePt VI, VII
18
listed · VII A
PaidVII A9
Voting boardVI 1a11
IndependentVI 1b9
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$12.9M
Investment incomeLn 3$811K
Other incomeLn 4–11$5.5M
Gains on assetsLn 7$605K
Total revenueLn 12$19.3M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$0
SavingsLn 2$1.3M
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$1.3M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$7.3M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$227K
Other assetsLn 15$3.0M
Total assetsLn 16$14.9M
LiabilitiesLn 26$9.3M
Net assetsLn 32$5.6M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 595
VolunteersI 618
Fiscal year endsHeaderJune
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY25End FY25
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$2.1M$1.3M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$7.1M$7.3M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$308K$227K
Total assetsLn 16$16.7M$14.9M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10.3M$9.3M
Net assetsLn 32$6.4M$5.6M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$1.8M$1.1M$704K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$8.4M$6.4M$2.0M
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$215K$174K$40K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$854K$727K$128K
Payroll taxesLn 10$615K$466K$149K
Legal feesLn 11b$51K$51K
Accounting feesLn 11c$113K$113K
Investment management feesLn 11f$39K$39K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$1.0M$1.0M$38K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$2.3M$2.3M$568
Office expensesLn 13$77K$73K$5K
OccupancyLn 16$456K$379K$78K
TravelLn 17$55K$32K$23K
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$115K$84K$30K
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$134K$104K$29K
InsuranceLn 23$175K$135K$40K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$3.0M$2.8M$184K
All other expensesLn 24e$369K$219K$150K
Total functional expensesLn 25$19.7M$15.9M$3.8M$0

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest Viewing $19.3M$19.7M−$461K$5.6M 990 PDF
FY2024 $19.6M$24.8M−$5.2M$6.4M 990 PDF
FY2023 $19.6M$24.7M−$5.1M$12.3M 990 PDF
FY2022 $26.7M$24.3M$2.4M$16.8M 990 PDF
FY2021 $26.4M$25.0M$1.4M$15.6M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2025 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $19,271,696 across 8 lines filed
Lines not itemized here account for $5,368,682 of total revenue; see the IRS return.
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$1,000
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,000
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $12,936,165$12,936,165
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $205,733$205,733
VIII-5 RoyaltiesExcluded from tax $70,336$70,336
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsExcluded from tax $605,406$605,406
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Unrelated business $84,374$84,374
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $18,304,847 · Unrelated business $84,374 · Excluded from tax $881,475$19,271,696
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $19,732,804 across 18 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $1,108,851 · Management $703,860$1,812,711
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $6,383,677 · Management $1,983,552$8,367,229
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $174,333 · Management $40,224$214,557
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $726,739 · Management $127,592$854,331
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $465,750 · Management $149,271$615,021
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $51,072$51,072
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $113,012$113,012
IX-11f Investment management feesManagement $39,156$39,156
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $1,003,646 · Management $37,845$1,041,491
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $2,281,478 · Management $568$2,282,046
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $72,547 · Management $4,579$77,126
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $378,747 · Management $77,504$456,251
IX-17 TravelPrograms $32,287 · Management $23,081$55,368
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $84,418 · Management $30,371$114,789
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $104,292 · Management $29,390$133,682
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $134,974 · Management $40,038$175,012
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $2,776,608 · Management $184,169$2,960,777
IX-24e All other expensesPrograms $219,172 · Management $150,001$369,173
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $15,947,519 · Management $3,785,285 · Fundraising $0$19,732,804
Part X · Balance sheet $14,921,408 assets, 17 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $600$0
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $2,124,861$1,258,361
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $1,713,813$1,503,027
X-8 Inventories for sale or useStart of year $371,241$345,325
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $1,729,910$1,298,233
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $308,126$227,338
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $7,081,024$7,310,569
X-14 Intangible assetsStart of year $347,415$0
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $2,999,921$2,978,555
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $16,676,911$14,921,408
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $3,305,303$2,714,265
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $3,067,536$2,623,505
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $3,702,908$3,007,113
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $10,275,747$9,344,883
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $6,401,164$5,576,525
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $6,401,164$5,576,525
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $16,676,911$14,921,408
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $5,576,525 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$19,271,696
XI-2 Total expenses$19,732,804
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$461,108
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$6,401,164
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$366,136
XI-9 Other changes in net assets−$729,667
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$5,576,525

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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