Liberty Science Center Inc.

“The return is prepared by an independent accounting firm based on information provided by the company and in consultation with the company's staff. The draft prepared by the accounting firm is then carefully reviewed by the finance department. The final draft of the Form 990 will be provided to each Board Member prior to filing with the IRS.”

“The organization has a written conflict of interest policy covering all trustees, officers, and employees that requires, in part, that no individual may participate in discussions or decisions on any matter in which he or she has a material financial interest. Any individual who has a conflict of interest would recuse themself from any discussions on the matter involved. All trustees, officers and employees are required to certify compliance with the conflict of interest policy on an annual basis and to indicate whether the organization does business with an entity in which they have a material financial interest. When a potential conflict of interest is identified, the circumstances are reviewed internally by the CFO and the controller, and if further clarification is required in order to determine whether a conflict exists, external legal counsel is consulted.”

“The liberty science center board, acting through a committee comprised of solely of independent trustees, periodically conducts a review to determine the going fair market compensation ranges for comparable positions at similarly situated organizations, by reference to compensation surveys and other organizations' forms 990. The liberty science center sets compensation within the range of the going market rate. No individual having a conflict of interest is permitted to participate in the review or decision.”

“The organization does not currently make its governing documents or conflict of interest policy available to the public. Financial statements are available upon request.”

“Liberty science center (lsc) is a major not-for-profit science center devoted to stem (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education. The center's mission is to get learners of all ages excited about the power, promise, and pure fun of science and technology. More than half a million guests visit lsc annually including some 210,000 students and teachers. Of those, approximately 40% are low-income, underserved youth, their families and their teachers. Lsc is housed in a dramatic 300,000-square-foot facility on the jersey city bank of the hudson river in liberty state park, new jersey, with dramatic views of lower manhattan and the statue of liberty. It offers 12 exhibition galleries, live science programs, three theaters including the nation's largest imax dome theater, and a full service caf and gift shop. Special weekend and holiday programming incorporates a wide variety of exciting experiences including meeting visiting scientists, trying out new technology and even enjoying science-related character appearances. Educators and students from across the new jersey-new york city area are a special focus. Teachers can improve their science pedagogy or sign students up for award-winning onsite and off-site education programs. These include classes for scientists ages 2-5, focused k-12 field trips, hands-on lab workshops, and electronic videoconferencing that ushers students into science-rich settings in real time such as surgical suites.”

“Liberty science center has broad ambitions and sound strategies to change the face of science education in new jersey and beyond. In addition to its engaging exhibition and theater offerings, an important tool in achieving that objective is the jennifer a. Chalsty center for science learning and teaching. The jennifer a. Chalsty center provides outstanding and affordable educator professional development opportunities. School residencies are available there for special needs, home schoolers, and other students, while the internationally acclaimed "live from surgery program," where students observe and discuss procedures and risk factors with operating staff via teleconferencing during live surgery, takes place in the theater. In addition to the 100-seat theater, the chalsty center encompasses five fully-equipped labs, a central forum, and teacher resource center for training programs. Liberty science center also conducts curriculum-linked onsite, offsite, and online programs including field trips, classroom and lab instructions, interpretive programs in both formal and informal settings, traveling science presentations, and early childhood science programming. The institution offers museum strategic planning and design services, annually hosts hundreds of private events from birthday parties to high-end product launches, hosts workforce development initiatives, and showcases public science- and technology- related events from robotics competitions to live animal shows to rocketry lessons.”