Be a Champion Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
900191922
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Houston, TX, USA
Phone
2818333129
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,857,168
Expenses
$3,358,250
Assets
$1,605,643
Liabilities
$6,403,271

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JARON BARGANIER (CEO/CHAIRMAN)

Highest reported compensation

  • JAMES HONG (COO/VICE CHAIRMAN): $30,000 total reported compensation
  • JARON BARGANIER (CEO/CHAIRMAN): $30,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

See description of organization's mission or most significant activities.

What it reported doing in 2025

Be a champion, inc. Programs (after-school, summer, sports and youth camps) - these programs operate in the 12 major school districts and community centers and churches around the greater houston, dallas/fort worth and san antonio areas. All programs involve enrichment activities that provide students with a well-rounded learning approach outside of school hours. This is the widest-reaching program be a champion, inc. Offers, impacting over 2,200 kids daily. This program provides students with opportunities that are not provided during the school hours, while parents are seeking employment opportunities. Be a champion, inc offered over 90+ programs in over 70 campuses around the greater houston, dallas/fort worth and san antonio areas.

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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 52
  • Sustainability: 14
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 95.9%; rating input score 96
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 57.1%; rating input score 57; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 44
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -80.8%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.48; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 3.99; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.8%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.3% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -2.3% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 95.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 7 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $30K · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2025
  • 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.
  • 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 57/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 23/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 1/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 55/100.