Ambassadors For Christ Youth Ministries

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
205803873
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Houston, TX, United States
Phone
281-536-5475
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,178,441
Expenses
$4,311,059
Assets
$333,811
Liabilities
$132,241

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • SHERRIE YOUNG SAMS (EXECUTIVE DI): $222,561 total reported compensation
  • KENNETH SAMS (PROJECT MANA): $188,500 total reported compensation
  • GWENDOLYN MIDDLETON (COO): $134,616 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Inspire excellence and promote leadership to youth through Christ-centered support, guidance, and resources that aim to inspire hope, foster transformation, and build a strong foundation for lifelong success. Inspire excellence and promote leadership. Ambassadors For Christ Youth Ministries is dedicated to transforming the lives of youth and young adults through Christ-centered support, guidance, and resources that aim to inspire hope, foster transformation, and build a foundation for a brighter future. Ambassadors for Christ Youth Ministries, Inc. (AFC) is a model faith- and community-based nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that operates in Texas and Arkansas. It was formed in 2006 for the purpose of providing mentorship and youth development programming to at-risk, underprivileged, homeless, and displaced youth through multi-faceted culturally and linguistically appropriate service...

What it reported doing in 2024

Our organization has provided an outlet and platform for growth to over 4,400 at-risk youth in partnership with schools, churches, and community youth-serving organizations in the city of houston, Texas. Afc's programs are uniquely structured to keep students engaged in school, to teach students to be more responsible, and to enhance students' critical thinking and problem solving skills while working within a team-oriented, cooperative learning framework. Through the enhancement of these skills, students are better prepared to express themselves effectively and creatively in any social environment, thus bolstering their self-confidence and opportunities for success in life and work. Testimonies from youth participants, teachers, guidance counselors, and parents/guardians confirm that our program produces positive results by curtailing many of the inner city problems that children and youth face today, including high student dropout rates, low self-esteem, suicide, teenage pregnancy, and alcohol and drug abuse. Afc enjoys thriving partnership with nearly 20 schools in the alief and houston independent school districts, as well as other youth serving organizations. Many of our partnering schools are the leading providers of academic and behavior improvement programs for the most challenging, disruptive, low-performing, credit deficient, grade-repeating students who are at-risk of dropping out of school. Afc is accountable to a board of directors that is responsible for its fiscal and legal operations. Afc has board approved policies and procedures (p&p) and a human resources manual as well as quality assurance systems in place for which all staff are trained and accountable. Since 2012, afc has implemented its promoting health among teens (phat), teen pregnancy prevention, evidence-based curriculum to over 1,200 youth, through the prep federal funding. Last fall (2015), afc was re-funded by the prep grant for the next 3 years. In 2014, afc was awarded two additional 3-year grants that target runaway, homeless, and street youth. Also in 2014, afc opened a drop-in and resource center that is catered to runaway, homeless and street youth needing to -drop in" for food, shelter, and/or shower and laundry facility. The drop-in center also has a computer lab, as well as a licensed professional counselor and case manager ready to meet the needs of our target youth.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 100% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 95% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 60
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 17
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87.5%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 84.8%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -3.2%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.08; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.4; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 15.7%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 87.5% of revenue deployed · 84.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $223K · 7 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 24/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 2/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 27/100.