Cascade Community Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 274897470
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2015–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2014
- Location
- Grand Rapids, MI, USA
- Phone
- 6166347254
- Rating
- 56
- Verdict
- MIXED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Human Service Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $239,558
- Expenses
- $257,744
- Assets
- $106,612
- Liabilities
- $1,036
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
10 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Kimberly Livingston (President)
- Justin Knapp (Vice President)
- Justin Swan (CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- Justin Swan (CEO): $64,615 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The Cascade Community Foundation is organized to receive and administer funds and to provide financial support for service, programs, and projects which preserve and enhance the quality of life of people who live in Cascade Township, Forest Hills area, Kent County, Michigan. The Foundation focuses on projects that address art, culture, community development, education, environment, health, social needs, and recreation in Cascade Township.
What it reported doing in 2024
To provide financial support for services, programs, and projects which preserve and enhance the quality of life of people who live in Cascade Township, Forest Hills area, Kent County, Michigan. The Foundation focuses on projects which address art, culture, community development, education, environment, health, social needs, and recreation in Cascade Township.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 68% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 65% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 29
- Transparency & Controls: 86
- Accountability: 79
- Sustainability: 25
- Growth: 40
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 32%; rating input score 32
- Program expense ratio: 29.7%; rating input score 30
- Fundraising efficiency: $3.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -7.6%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.41; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 25.1%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -9.8% per year; rating input score 0; 11th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -13.4% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 32% of revenue deployed · 29.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $77K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $65K · 10 people listed
- Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 32/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 30/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 15/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 25/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 46/100.