America on Track

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
330724044
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Santa Ana, CA, USA
Phone
7145317144
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Crime Prevention

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,427,495
Expenses
$2,070,629
Assets
$3,538,544
Liabilities
$759,639

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Terry Thompson (President)
  • Claire Braeburn (Exec Director/CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Terry Thompson (President): $139,610 total reported compensation
  • Claire Braeburn (Exec Director/CEO): $139,610 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Serving more than 44,000 Orange County children and families each year, America On Track breaks the cycle of poverty, incarceration, and hopelessness through long-term youth development, education, and life-enhancing programs. America On Track (AOT), an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was founded in 1995 to fill identified service delivery gaps in the fields of human services, education, health & fitness, tobacco/vape & drug use prevention, and public health policy implementation throughout Orange County. The mission of America On Track is to inspire Brighter Futures by building youth leaders, supporting families, and strengthening communities through life-transforming programs. Our vision is to create more vibrant communities by addressing social inequities and health disparities through evidence-based programs. Our motto is: Creating Brighter Futures for Communities & Youth since 1995!

What it reported doing in 2024

Since 2010, America On Track has been implementing three consecutive 5-year grants from the California Tobacco Control Project (CTCP), California Department of Public Health to reduce secondhand smoke exposure in Orange County, with an additional "Empowering Local Communities to End the Tobacco Epidemic" grant being awarded as of May 2023. The goals of our On Track for a Tobacco-Free Orange County and our On Track to End the Tobacco Epidemic projects are to address social determinants of health and to reduce health disparities that are prevalent in communities with high Latino and Asian populations and high percentages of low socioeconomic status and limited-education individuals. We accomplish our goals by engaging in activities to facilitate the adoption and implementation of: Smoke-Free City policies in Santa Ana, Buena Park, and Stanton; Voluntary Smoke-Free MUH policies throughout Orange County; and policies eliminating the sale and distribution of menthol and other flavored tobacco products in the cities of Buena Park, Stanton, and Fullerton. America On Track has successfully accomplished the goal of eliminating the sale and distribution of menthol and other flavored tobacco products as well as the goal of getting a Smoke-Free City policy adopted in the City of Buena Park. Buena Park adopted a Tobacco Retail License and Flavor Ban ordinance in 2021, and then in 2022 they adopted a Comprehensive Smoke-Free City and Smoke-Free Multi-Unit Residence ordinance that protects residents from unwanted secondhand smoke exposure. We also accomplished our goal of eliminating the sale and distribution of menthol and other flavored tobacco products in the City of Stanton, who adopted a strengthened Tobacco Retail License and Flavor Ban ordinance in November 2024.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 70% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 85
  • Sustainability: 57
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 81.7%; rating input score 82
  • Program expense ratio: 94.9%; rating input score 95
  • Fundraising efficiency: $310.99 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 75%; rating input score 75; 13th 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: 14.7%; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.71; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.21; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.5%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.1% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.5% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 81.7% of revenue deployed · 94.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 8 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $140K · 8 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $125K reported
  • Consistency: 47 of 48 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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.
  • 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.

  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 56/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 42/100.