Igem Foundation INC EIN 45-2313408

Igem Foundation INC

EIN  45-2313408 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Cambridge, MA Founded 2011
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 8/19/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Promotes synthetic biology education and research through student competitions and a shared parts registry.
Leadership
Randall Rettberg · President (thru 7/16/24)/Director
Money in and out
$6.5M revenue, $6.3M expenses
Bottom line
84% program efficiency

Promotes synthetic biology education and research through student competitions and a shared parts registry. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $6.5M in revenue, $6.3M in expenses, and $431K in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$6.5M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$6.3M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$431K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $204K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.84 Management & general $0.16
Program efficiency
84%
of spending reaches programs▲ +2% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
2.6mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▲ +100% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
+3%
revenue over expenses, this year▲ +115% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$6.5M
FY2024▲ +8%
Expenses
$6.3M
FY2024▼ -14%
Total assets
$1.7M
FY2024▲ +64%
Total liabilities
$1.3M
FY2024▲ +56%
Total revenue
$6.5M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$6.3M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$431K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$204K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$1.7M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B84%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 37
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 46
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $5.3M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Igem foundation fosters scientific research and education through the organization and operation of the igem competition, the world's premier student synthetic biology competition. In 2024, igem engaged more than 400 student teams and institutions globally and over 10,000 participants from 45 countries-the highest participation in its…

$5.3Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CIgem Foundation INC
EINHdr · item D45-2313408
Principal addressHdr · item CCambridge, MA
WebsiteHdr · item Jigem.org
Year of formationHdr · item L2011
State of legal domicileHdr · item MMA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFScience & Technology (U03)
Ruling yearIRS BMFSep 2013

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a7
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b6
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13No
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
President (thru 7/16/24)/Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director (thru 11/18/24)
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director (thru 3/24/24)
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Meagan Lizarazo’s $168K as Former Clerk/COO/VP is at the 43rd percentile of top reported officer pay among 362 $1–10M science & technology 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Randall Rettberg$236,554$188,933$149,773
Meagan Lizarazo$168,462$145,787$142,800$121,273

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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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Program service revenue$6.3M · 97%
Contributions & grants$150K · 2%
Program service revenue97%$6.3M
Contributions & grants2%$150K
Investment income$20K
Total revenueLn 12$6.5M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.84 Management & general $0.16
Program services84%$5.3M
Management & general16%$1.0M
Total functional expensesLn 25$6.3M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$1.3M
Total assetsLn 16$1.7M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$1.3M
Total net assetsLn 32$431K
Months of cash on handcomputed2.5

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $1.3M · Operating expenses/yr $6.3M
2.6 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $5.3M · Total expenses $6.3M
84%
Management & General
Management & general $1.0M · Total expenses $6.3M
16%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $6.3M
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $318K
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $150K · Total revenue $6.5M
2%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $6.5M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $6.3M · Total revenue $6.5M
97%
Investment reliance
Investment income $20K · Total revenue $6.5M
0%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $6.3M · Total expenses $6.3M
101%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $6.5M · Prior year $6.0M
+8%
Revenue CAGR
FY2020 $3.3M · FY2024 $6.5M
+18%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $431K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $6.5M · Expenses $6.3M
+3%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $1.7M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $431K · Total assets $1.7M
25%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $7K · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $1.7M
0%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Randall Rettberg · Reported title PRESIDENT (THRU 7/16/24)/DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $0 · Total expenses $6.3M
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $1.2M · Total expenses $6.3M
19%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 84%
Overhead ratio 16%
Fundraising cost ratio 0%
Revenue growth 8%
Legal fee ratio 1%
Accounting fee ratio 2%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$50K
Grants paid · 1 grant · $10K · 2023–2023
MaggenixFY2023$10,000

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2024 (Latest)$6.5M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$6.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$5.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$5.1M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$3.3M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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