Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Central Gulf Coast Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

Big brothers big sisters of the central gulf coast is the local leader in quality youth mentoring services. We hold ourselves accountable for and are able to measure specific youth outcomes that indicate that when matched with a big, our littles achieve success in school, are better able to avoid risky behaviors such as getting into fights and trying drugs and alcohol, and improve their self-confidence and academic performance. Our program serves children ages 6 to 18 in mobile, baldwin, Washington, clarke, escambia, and monroe counties in Alabama. The program also serves children ages 6 to 18 in jackson, harrison, and hancock counties in Mississippi. Once a match is created between a big and a little, our organization provides ongoing professional supportfor the duration of their match or until the little turns 18 or graduates from high school. Our matches served during our school-based program for 2024 resulted in the following outcomes: - 86% of littles stayed on track with or improved academic performance and grades. - 84% of littles decreased of maintained depressive symptoms. - 76% of littles kept or created plans for high school graduation and beyond. - 78% of littles kept a strong or increased sense of family/parental connectedness. - littles improved or maintained avoidance of risky behaviors such as juvenile justice contact (100%), bullying (89%), school discipline (87%), status offenses and illegal activity (91%), and substance abuse (97%). - 85% of littles have or developed sparks, activities & interests that are important to them and have an important adult to help them develop. - 73% of littles reported a strong or increasing level of school connectedness. - 81% of littles reported a strong or increasing level of social competence. During the year, children matched with a mentor for one year in our community-based program resulted in the following outcomes: - 77% of littles stayed on track with or improved academic performance and grades. - 85% of littles decreased of maintained depressive symptoms. - 93% of littles kept or created plans for high school graduation and beyond. - 72% of littles kept a strong or increased sense of family/parental connectedness. - littles improved or maintained avoidance of risky behaviors such as juvenile justice contact (92%), bullying (93%), school discipline (90%), status offenses and illegal activity (100%), and substance abuse (97%). - 82% of littles have or developed sparks, activities & interests that are important to them and have an important adult to help them develop. - 81% of littles reported a strong or increasing level of school connectedness. - 94% of littles reported a strong or increasing level of social competence. Our "littles" have many challenges to overcome, including poverty, negative influences from peers, and poor academic performance. Big brothers big sisters of the central gulf coast helps the children we serve overcome these obstacles by providing a thoroughly screened and trained, caring adult to serve as a "big" brother or "big" sister, who serves as a mentor, guide and friend so that the child can have someone that they can share new experiences with, confide in, and receive additional support and guidance from. Our services are offered at no cost to our community's most vulnerable families. Those that invest in our mission enable us to conduct background checks on volunteers to ensure child safety, and provide ongoing professional support for children, families and volunteers to build and sustain long-lasting relationships; a key to successful mentoring.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 93.7%; rating input score 94
• Program expense ratio: 79.5%; rating input score 79
• Fundraising efficiency: $5.19 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
  • 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: Fail
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -17.6%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.16; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.15; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 13.8%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 23.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings