Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in May 2015.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
72 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
8 people listed on the 990; $100K paid to officers and key staff.
Mikki Mccomb-Kobza’s $100K as Executive Director is at the 84th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1613 $100K–1M education 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 · 1 named individual · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Mikki Mccomb-Kobza | $100,438 | $94,167 |
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 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Programs and updates
Conserves oceans through research and education.
Questions for Ocean First Institute
Your first name shows with your question. Ocean First Institute answers here, for everyone.
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3. Shark Field CourseShark research conducted from the Key Largo, Florida lab, focusing on abundance, seasonality, and species within a marine protected area in the Florida Keys. Undergraduate students are trained through four summer courses on marine science research methods.
2. Ocean First Discovery Center Online Courses Launch of over 18 online education courses available on the website, reaching thousands of students and members of the general public.
1. Plastic Pollution Monitoring Program Collection of water and sediment samples in Florida and Colorado to identify microplastics and microfibers. Students analyze samples using microscopes, with further analysis conducted at the FAU Henderson School laboratory.
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
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $68K | $19K |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $73K | $48K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $59K | $49K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $564K | $598K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $57K | $61K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $507K | $537K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $214 | $214 | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $100K | $27K | $73K | |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $219K | $219K | ||
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $15K | $15K | ||
| Legal feesLn 11b | $6K | $6K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $4K | $4K | ||
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $8K | $8K | ||
| Office expensesLn 13 | $5K | $5K | ||
| TravelLn 17 | $18K | $18K | ||
| InterestLn 20 | $3K | $3K | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $35K | $35K | ||
| InsuranceLn 23 | $8K | $8K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $110K | $39K | $71K | |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $56K | $55K | $444 | |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $587K | $424K | $162K | $444 |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $599K | $587K | $12K | $537K | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $950K | $616K | $333K | $507K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $433K | $404K | $29K | $92K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $437K | $366K | $71K | $77K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $209K | $219K | −$10K | $6K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $598,614 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 7 of 7 board members independent, 1 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $598,614 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $586,863 across 14 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $597,725 assets, 12 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $537,079 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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