Robonation delivers educational programs in robotics, autonomy, and related technologies through student competitions, hands-on learning resources, and educator support. These programs provide applied stem learning experiences for students from elementary through higher education, developing technical, problem-solving, and teamwork skills aligned with workforce needs. Through this work, Robonation increases awareness of education and career pathways and contributes to the development of a future workforce in engineering, skilled trades, and technology fields.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
68¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$379K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2020 · 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 6
filings with a surplus
Average deficit $78K a year · 2% of revenue · last 6 filings
Concern: a surplus in 2 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
68%
of spending
Fine: 68% of spending went to programs; 65% to 75%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$379K
to officers and key staff · 14% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 14% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
2 mo
of spending, in cash
Plus $2.3M in investments, Pt X · Ln 11–13
Fine: 1.6 months of spending in cash; 1 to 3.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $100K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$299K
10% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 10% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
6
of 6 voting members
Looks good: 6 of 6 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$2.3M
Spent
$2.8M
To programs
68%
Net assets
$2.8M
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$2.3M
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$2.3M
FY2021$2.9M
FY2022$5.1M
FY2023$5.0M
FY2024$5.6M
FY2025$5.3M
Expenses
$2.8M
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$2.8M
FY2021$3.2M
FY2022$5.2M
FY2023$4.5M
FY2024$5.5M
FY2025$5.3M
Net assets
$2.8M
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$2.8M
FY2021$2.8M
FY2022$2.4M
FY2023$3.3M
FY2024$3.9M
FY2025$4.1M

From the FY2020 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2020 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Dec 2017.

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

Where the money goes

68 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 68% · $1.9M Management & general 32% · $896K

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

9 people listed on the 990; $379K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Director
$162,199Pt VII · Sec A
Strategy & Marketing Director
$110,311Pt VII · Sec A
Finance Director
$106,449Pt VII · Sec A
Board of Trustees-Audit Comm
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board of Trustees
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board of Trustees
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Daryl Davidson’s $196K as President and CEO is at the 81st percentile of top reported officer pay among 3395 $1–10M 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 · 7 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Daryl Davidson$195,992$180,949$176,260$175,704$164,581$162,199
Lindsey Groark$141,248$135,722$130,519$118,068$105,595—
Kyle Walker—$137,102$130,853———
Janelle Curtis———$115,682$117,704$110,311
Richard E Quest$114,708—————
Norma Floriza————$58,346$106,449
Rick Quest—$104,629————

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 15aYes

Programs and updates

Robonation INC is an education nonprofit based in Arlington, VA, formed in 1992.

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Provided by the organization

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2 programs · $1.9M · in their own filed words · FY2020
01

Education

Conducted activities to promote awareness of and interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (stem) among students in grades k-12, with emphasis on fostering interest in careers in robotics.

$1.3Mprogram expense
02

Student Competitions

Sponsored and supported competitions in which teams of college, high school, and middle school students from various countries designed, built and operated unmanned and remotely operated vehicles to achieve specified performance and mission goals.

$606Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

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

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2024
Lukis FoundationFY2024$100K
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$100K
Grants paid · 6 grants · $91K · 2020–2025
Sepdac INCGA · FY2025$15,000
Sepdac INCGA · FY2022$15,000
Sepdac INCGA · FY2021$15,000
Team InspirationFY2020$5,800

By the numbers

The FY2020 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$2.3M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.4M
Fees for servicesLn 2g$869K
Investment incomeLn 3$6K
Money outPt IX
$2.8M
Ln 25
Programscol B$1.9M
Managementcol C$896K
Owns and owesPt X
$2.8M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$380K
Total assetsLn 16$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$299K
PeoplePt VI, VII
9
listed · VII A
PaidVII A3
Voting boardVI 1a6
IndependentVI 1b6
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.4M
Government grantsLn 1e$1.4M
Fees for servicesLn 2g$869K
Investment incomeLn 3$6K
Gains on assetsLn 7−$39K
Total revenueLn 12$2.3M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$159K
SavingsLn 2$221K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$380K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$2.3M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$510
Total assetsLn 16$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$299K
Net assetsLn 32$2.8M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 521
VolunteersI 612
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
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 FY20End FY20
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$518K$380K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$1.9M$2.3M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$2K$510
Total assetsLn 16$3.4M$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$343K$299K
Net assetsLn 32$3.0M$2.8M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$23K$23K
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$16K$16K
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$280K$83K$197K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$778K$517K$261K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$29K$20K$9K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$82K$38K$44K
Payroll taxesLn 10$78K$47K$32K
Legal feesLn 11b$3K$3K
Accounting feesLn 11c$40K$40K
Investment management feesLn 11f$1$1
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$56K$15K$42K
Office expensesLn 13$38K$24K$14K
Information technologyLn 14$273K$134K$139K
OccupancyLn 16$9K$4K$5K
TravelLn 17$16K$9K$7K
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$625K$625K
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$2K$2K
InsuranceLn 23$17K$1K$16K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$338K$319K$19K
All other expensesLn 24e$74K$6K$69K
Total functional expensesLn 25$2.8M$1.9M$896K$0

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $5.3M$5.3M−$20K$4.1M 990 PDF
FY2024 $5.6M$5.5M$58K$3.9M 990 PDF
FY2023 $5.0M$4.5M$446K$3.3M 990 PDF
FY2022 $5.1M$5.2M−$122K$2.4M 990 PDF
FY2021 $2.9M$3.2M−$345K$2.8M 990 PDF
FY2020 Viewing $2.3M$2.8M−$482K$2.8M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support F · Foreign J · Pay O · Explanations
See the full FY2020 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $2,294,961 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $2,085,717$1,420,391
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $2,171,292$868,907
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $48,227$5,663
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $19,134$0
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $4,324,370$2,294,961
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paidPrior year $134,000$38,800
I-14 Benefits paid to membersPrior year $0$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $1,282,114$1,247,618
I-16a Professional fundraising feesPrior year $0$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $2,939,179$1,490,928
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $4,355,293$2,777,346
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$30,923−$482,385
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body6
VI-1b Independent voting members6
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $2,294,961 across 7 lines filed
VIII-1e Government grants$1,375,857
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$44,534
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,420,391
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $868,907$868,907
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $44,526$44,526
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsExcluded from tax −$38,863−$38,863
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $868,907 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $5,663$2,294,961
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $2,777,346 across 20 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizationsPrograms $23,100$23,100
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsPrograms $15,700$15,700
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $83,392 · Management $196,962$280,354
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $516,732 · Management $261,382$778,114
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $20,444 · Management $8,552$28,996
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $38,110 · Management $43,568$81,678
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $46,654 · Management $31,822$78,476
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $2,668$2,668
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $40,143$40,143
IX-11f Investment management feesManagement $1$1
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $14,836 · Management $41,625$56,461
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $23,888 · Management $13,815$37,703
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $134,444 · Management $138,889$273,333
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $4,070 · Management $4,817$8,887
IX-17 TravelPrograms $9,263 · Management $6,691$15,954
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $624,761$624,761
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationManagement $1,759$1,759
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $1,180 · Management $15,573$16,753
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $319,259 · Management $18,930$338,189
IX-24e All other expensesPrograms $5,739 · Management $68,577$74,316
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $1,881,572 · Management $895,774 · Fundraising $0$2,777,346
Part X · Balance sheet $3,123,497 assets, 15 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $103,370$158,569
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $414,422$221,251
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $555,357$272,904
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $377,977$132,938
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $19,821$62,559
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $2,268$510
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $1,909,414$2,274,766
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $3,382,629$3,123,497
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $278,111$254,227
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $46,479$43,244
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $18,086$1,941
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $342,676$299,412
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $3,039,953$2,824,085
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $3,039,953$2,824,085
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $3,382,629$3,123,497
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $2,824,085 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$2,294,961
XI-2 Total expenses$2,777,346
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$482,385
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$3,039,953
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$266,517
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$2,824,085

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2020 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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