Alternative Family Services

Legal name: Alternative Family Services Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
942427088
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Santa Rosa, CA, US
Phone
(800) 300-1022
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Foster Care

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$30,048,346
Expenses
$29,519,563
Assets
$35,355,497
Liabilities
$26,467,359

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

26 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARSHA LEWIS-AKYEEM (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • INVERLEITH FRUCI (BOARD PRESIDENT)
  • NANCY LELICOFF (BOARD VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • MARTHA DUARTE (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $351,593 total reported compensation
  • CRAIG BARTON (CHIEF PROGRAM OFFICER): $255,262 total reported compensation
  • MARSHA LEWIS-AKYEEM (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $243,566 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Since 1978, the AFS mission is to support vulnerable children and families in need of stability, safety, and well-being in communities.

What it reported doing in 2024

Alternative family services, inc. (afs), is a nonprofit organization founded in 1978. Afs receives its primary funding from county governments. Licensed by the California department of social services as a foster family agency, afs provides therapeutic foster care for children in a variety of formats including short-term shelter care, long-term foster care, intensive treatment foster care, and foster care for children with developmental disabilities. Afs is also licensed by the California department of social services as an adoption agency. It helps foster parents legally adopt their foster children. Additionally, afs operates independent living skills programs to prepare older foster youth for emancipation in marin county as well as a program that offers housing and other supports to former foster youth in marin county.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 76
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 83.9%; rating input score 84
  • Program expense ratio: 85.2%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $86.92 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 22nd 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: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 27th 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: 1.8%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.2; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.75; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.5%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.9% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.5% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 4 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 83.9% of revenue deployed · 85.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $25.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $352K · 26 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $1.7M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 10 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 41/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 16/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.