Washington, D.C. · Nonprofit
Society for American Archaeology
Society for American Archaeology (Washington, D.C.) receives grants from 9 organizations whose IRS filings report $241,066 to it, the largest being ALPHAWOOD FOUNDATION ($118,031). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $3.0M
- Funders on record
- 9
- Grants received
- $241k
- Net assets
- $13M
What Society for American Archaeology does
Mission
SAA empowers its members to understand humanity's past through ethically-based scientific and humanistic investigation, to promote preservation of archaeological resources and cultural heritage through support of legislation and education, to create collaboration between the profession and descendant communities, and to assist professional growth.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Annual Meeting - the society for American archaeology's annual meeting gives attendees the opportunity to present and discuss their research, network with fellow colleagues, and participate in various workshops. SAA also organizes an exhibit hall, which showcases vendors who specialize in archaeological related products and services. The annual meeting is held in major cities throughout the Americas, to make it accessible for those in the archaeological community who would like to participate. SAA also holds its annual general business meeting to present awards and discuss the status of the society. At a typical meeting, there are approximately 4,000 meeting attendees.
$918,074 spent$966,837 earned by the program40% of program spendingMembership Program - the society for American archaeology's membership program serves to unite those in the archaeological community under a common set of goals; to stimulate interest and research in American archaeology; advocate and aid in the conservation of archaeological resources; encourage public access to and appreciation of archaeology; oppose all looting of sites and the purchase and sale of looted archaeological materials; and serve as a bond among those interested in the archaeology of the Americas. Members can participate in interest groups, task forces and SAA committees.
$459,036 spentof which $1,000 as grants$813,617 earned by the program20% of program spendingPublic Program - SAA's public programs are crucial in promoting the obectives of the society. SAA advocates for the interests of archaeological resources before congress and federal agencies. The international government affairs committee advises on global issues. In addition, the society answers inquiries from the general public, and provides a variety of educational materials to teachers and students interested in archaeology and resources for archaeologists to use in their outreach activities. The society also offers professional development opportunities, including the online seminar series and a series of voluntary statements that are crucial for an improved practice. The most visible of these documents is the SAA principles of archaeological ethics.
$344,278 spentof which $1,804 as grants$40,262 earned by the program15% of program spendingAwards, Scholarships, & Fellowships - SAA awards recognize and honor knowledge and professional achievements at all career levels from student and early career archaeologists to those who have made lasting contributions to the society and the profession.
$344,278 spentof which $270,812 as grants15% of program spendingPublications - the publications program provides an important benefit to SAA members by publishing scholarly journals, books from the SAA press, a full-color magazine, and other miscellaneous publications. As a member benefit, SAA members may choose one of now three journals: American antiquity, Latin American antiquity, or advances in archeological practice. American antiquity is devoted to the archaeology of the new world, and method and theory pertinent to the study of new world archaeology; Latin American antiquity is devoted to special reports on archaeology, prehistory, and ethno history from Latin America. Advances in archaeological practice is devoted to the practice of archaeology and solutions. All members receive the SAA archaeological record, published five times per year. This full-color magazine encompasses SAA business, thematic articles, and much more. The SAA press publishes books that relate to all fields of archaeological study, and primarily serve the needs of the SAA membership.
$229,518 spent$282,529 earned by the program10% of program spending
The 5 programs described on its FY2025 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $2,295,184.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2022 to 2023, from $10M to $12M (+15%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2017 1% · 2018 0% · 2020 1% · 2021 1% · 2022 7% · 2023 1% · 2024 0%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
11% of Society for American Archaeology’s revenue is contributions — more earned-revenue than three-quarters of its peers (63% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 0 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
Oona Schmid
Executive Director (Ex-Officio)
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 4 funders, grant income rose $500 → $64k.
1 of 9 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 1% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of Society for American Archaeology’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
Society for American Archaeology leans on a few funders — its largest provides 49% of grant income and the top three 91%; half comes from just 2 funders.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 2 funders to its left
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 100% · 2018 100% · 2019 67% · 2020 93% · 2021 88% · 2022 57% · 2023 68% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How long its funders stay
40% of Society for American Archaeology's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 44% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
Society for American Archaeology draws 100% of its grant income from funders outside Washington, D.C., across 6 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $1k arriving through sponsors registered in 1 state is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
Society for American Archaeology runs a healthier operating margin than half of the 3,230 arts & culture nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 3,230 arts & culture nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Organizations like Society for American Archaeology
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In Washington, D.C.
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
83% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
82%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 31 states
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for Society for American Archaeology: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds Society for American Archaeology?
- Society for American Archaeology (Washington, D.C.) receives grants from 9 organizations whose IRS filings report $241,066 to it, the largest being ALPHAWOOD FOUNDATION ($118,031). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does Society for American Archaeology have?
- IRS filings report 9 organizations giving $241,066 in grants to Society for American Archaeology, 4 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of Society for American Archaeology?
- ALPHAWOOD FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $118,031 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like Society for American Archaeology find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Washington, D.C.. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 9 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing