Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

Legal name: Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston - Houston

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
741109733
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Houston, TX, United States
Phone
713-526-4611
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$95,893,911
Expenses
$89,636,142
Assets
$64,806,069
Liabilities
$6,581,232

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

Leadership & pay

52 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CYNTHIA COLBERT (PRESIDENT/CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • CYNTHIA COLBERT (PRESIDENT/CEO): $278,221 total reported compensation
  • BART FERRELL (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $235,715 total reported compensation
  • BRIAN GILLEN (VP OF DEVELOPMENT & STEWAR): $186,468 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Our Vision: People of faith helping people in need achieve self-sufficiency and live with dignity. Our Mission: Catholic Charities, guided by God’s love, assists people by providing caring and compassionate services and advocating for social justice. Catholic Social Teaching proclaims that all people should be treated with dignity and respect. **That belief lies at the heart of the mission of Catholic Charities.** We are people of faith, helping people in need achieve self-sufficiency and live with dignity. Catholic Charities is a game changer for people in poverty. We offer a **_network of life-changing programs_** that work together to serve as a bridge to help people move from poverty to wholeness. _Everyone can do something to help_. **Volunteer. Be a voice for people in need. Make a financial gift.

What it reported doing in 2024

Disaster relief and response provides support to all those in need with a priority focus on low-income populations, including seniors and those living at or below the poverty line in the wake of disasters such as floods and hurricanes. The agency provides a variety of disaster recovery services including:-distribution of donated goods such as household items, cleaning items, grocery and gas cards, diapers, etc.;-intakes and needs assessments for disaster victims ;-basic needs services such as food distribution, temporary and emergency shelter assistance, rental assistance, and medication assistance;-home repair assistance;-relocation and furniture/household good replacements;-short-term and long-term case management, including assistance with registering for and receiving federal disaster assistance and other assistance programs; and-mental health services for victims of disaster.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 70% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 51% for direct work, and 49% for grants.
  • 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: 75
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 52
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.2%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 94%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: $34.9 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th 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: 6.5%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.72; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.7%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.7% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11.9% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 88.2% of revenue deployed · 94% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 32 of 32 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $84.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $278K · 52 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.5M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 16 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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 — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 28/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 42/100.