Third Way

What it reported doing in 2024

Social policy and politics: in 2024, third way's social policy, education and politics team focused on three core areas: 1) defining what american want from Washington; 2) centering value in the higher education debate; and 3) addressing threats on social issues: defining what americans want from Washington: third way's politics team answered this question by: --utilizing electoral data sources including the catalist voter file, cooperative election study, and ap votecast, to draft reports analyzing and explaining the american electorate and differences in opinion, worldview, and voting behavior across states and districts with a focus on key presidential and senate states and battleground house districts; --conducting qualitative and quantitative public opinion research to better understand what voters prioritize, how they think about current issues under discussion in the administration and congress, and what they want from candidates and policymakers; --building a case against running a well-financed third-party candidate in the 2024 presidential election by employing historical and empirical data to show this candidate would have no path to victory and could only play a role as a spoiler for voters; and, --tracking how ideological divergent candidates fare in primary and general elections in 2024 to continue years of work showing americans continue to gravitate to mainstream candidates over extremism.centering value in the higher education debate: third way's education team continues to lead a coordinated movement to change the federal policy narrative on higher education from cost to return on investment and socialize a slate of actionable, defensible solutions to improve postsecondary value, quality, and accountability for students and taxpayers. Third way advanced these efforts by:--hosting the program's largest event to date, the higher ed value summit, a conference that brought together experts in the field, including former department of education under secretary james kvaal and other notable influencers, for a day of learning and connection on the biggest barriers to centering value in the industry.--conducting landmark public opinion research on high school students, demonstrating that young americans still see value in pursuing a college degree and understanding their barriers to that pursuit. --publishing the fourth annual economic mobility index, along with a dedicated website for our value metrics, to celebrate colleges and universities that open their doors to students from low-income backgrounds and prioritize their success.--championing the postsecondary student success grant program to support evidence-based college retention and completion programs and making the case for making this fund permanent.--weighing in on the formation of a new college accreditor and how they're developing their accrediting standards to hold them accountable to their role in the process of improving outcomes for students. --developing policy ideas for improving the graduate student lending system, which currently drives our high outstanding federal student debt and takes advantage of unrestricted taxpayer dollars.addressing threats on social issues: third way remains committed to addressing threats to american values and vulnerable populations on key social and cultural issues. Third way employed various tactics to make progress on crime, immigration, and lgbt rights in the past year. This included:--conducting and releasing public opinion research with outside partners on voters' perceptions of crime. --testifying at a congressional hearing on crime to push back on the narrative that crime is rampant in states like California and Minnesota due to criminal justice reforms.--publishing and presenting public opinion research on voters' perceptions on immigration and the senate's bipartisan border bill. --releasing a series of memos pushing back on misinformation on issues related to immigration like migrant crime, mass deportation,

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 70.3%; rating input score 70
• Program expense ratio: 87.7%; rating input score 88
• Fundraising efficiency: $55.3 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
• Grant itemization coverage: 99.7%; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 96.9%; rating input score 97; 30th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 22.6%; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.69; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.11; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 11.9%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 11.5% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 9.5% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings