Catalyst of San Diego & Imperial Counties

Overview

Mission

Our Mission is to connect and activate funders to learn, lead and invest in our community.

What it reported doing in 2024

Catalyst of San Diego Imperial Counties Catalyst is a nonprofit network of over 70 foundations, giving circles, individual funders, and impact investors seeking to improve outcomes for residents of San Diego and Imperial Counties. Catalyst connects and activates funders to learn, lead, and invest in our community through learning opportunities, collaborative grantmaking funds, mission-aligned fiscal sponsorship support, and by serving as a connective hub for social change in Californias Southern Border Region. The vision of Catalyst is an equitable, collaborative, and impactful social change ecosystem that improves the lives of all residents in San Diego and Imperial Counties.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 67% for direct work, and 33% for grants.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
330868261
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Headquarters
San Diego, CA, USA
Phone
8588753333
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Management & Technical Assistance

Official website

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 94
  • Transparency & Controls: 77
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90.5%; rating input score 91
  • Fundraising efficiency: $41.51 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 98.7%; rating input score 99; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -26.5%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.98; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.8%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.1% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 14.8% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $192K · 13 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 annual filings from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 39 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 38 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Megan Thomas (President CEO): $192,039 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: FY2024.