Ann Arbor YMCA

Legal name: Ann Arbor Young Men's Christian Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
381525162
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Ann Arbor, MI, United States
Phone
(734) 996-9622
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$9,404,475
Expenses
$9,983,798
Assets
$29,223,399
Liabilities
$1,049,744

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • James Highsmith (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • James Highsmith (CEO): $211,694 total reported compensation
  • Jon Makarewich (CFO): $141,510 total reported compensation
  • Kyande Sanders (VP-Youth Development): $124,430 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Ann Arbor YMCA’s mission is to put our core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility into action through facilities and programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all. Coaching & accountability: Trained Lifestyle Coaches tailor discussions to group needs and support you every step of the way. Flexible delivery: In-person or virtual classes, plus access to an in-person or virtual YMCA membership during the program. Cost: This program is funded through a mix of sponsorships, grants, employers, insurance reimbursement and self-pay. We work hard to ensure that anyone who qualifies is able to participate and have scholarships available.

What it reported doing in 2025

4a. YOUTH DEVELOPMENT: All kids deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve, under the guidance of adults who care for them and believe in their potential. YMCA programs promote character development in youth, by sharing our core values of caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility. In 2025, at the Ann Arbor Y, 1,558 children participated in youth sports, 945 youth attended our residential summer camp, 1,187 kids attended our summer day camps, 23 children received Y early childhood care, 80 kids received preschool care, 1,141 youth were taught life-saving water skills, 56 kids were in our before and after school programs and 455 children attended child watch.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 81% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
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.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 41
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 89.7%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.86 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: -6.2%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.93; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.8%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.6% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.1% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site
  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 89.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $212K · 14 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 14/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.