Cedars Youth Services Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

Family preservation focusing on maintaining positive family and community connections, these prevention and early intervention services are provided to assist families in remaining intact and to reunify those currently living apart. Focus is placed on parenting skill building, appropriate child and youth development, and resource networking. Cedars also provides children with early and ongoing developmental opportunities. Extra efforts are made to accommodate low-income families receiving state childcare subsidies and offers scholarships to assist financial need. Services are provided through northbridge early childhood development center, community learning centers, and in family homes. Services include northbridge early childhood development program, community learning centers, ecological in-home family services, healthy families home visiting, partners in permanency, community response, sixpence, and family support. Cedars northbridge early childhood development center (ecdc) serves children, ages six weeks to six years. Classes are led by educated and experienced teachers and offers the benefit of an early childhood and family therapist. Cedars ecdc is accredited by the council on accreditation (coa) and has a step up to quality rating of 5. Cedars northbridge ecdc is located at 1533 n. 27th street. Community learning centers (clc) offer on-site before-and-after school childcare for elementary school children, grades k-5, as well as specialized clubs that enhance academic performance. The clc programs also focus on family and community involvement and operate a school and neighborhood advisory committee (snac). Cedars offers clcs at three lincoln public schools: clinton elementary school at 1520 n. 29th street, hartley elementary located at 730 n. 33rd street, and randolph elementary at 1024 s. 37th street. Ecological in-home family services is an evidence-based program designed to reduce risk of family disruption. This program utilizes in-home visits to build stronger family bonds, improve safety and connect families to community resources. These goals are accomplished through careful assessment and service planning, direct family engagement, implementation of relationship building, stress management and problem-solving strategies. Healthy families home visiting is an evidence-based, nationally recognized home visiting program model designed to work with overburdened families who are at-risk for child abuse and neglect and other adverse childhood experiences. Home visiting is a service provided within the home by highly trained and qualified professionals, including public health nurses and outreach workers. This program provides parents with support to enhance the child-parent relationship. Partners in permanency is a free, confidential resource for parents who have questions regarding their child's behavior, parenting struggles or family permanency concerns. Trained family partners assess immediate safety needs, identify the potential level of a behavioral crisis, make recommendations or referrals to applicable resources, and help families receive appropriate support required for their personal situation. The lincoln community response team supports families that are experiencing crisis by providing them with coaching, clinical mental health resources, education support, and case management. A family crisis may include behavioral or mental health problems, school truancy, law violations or other social factors. As a part of the team, a cedars family resource partner works with families from several elementary and middle schools to connect with families and provide resources. Sixpence is a home visitation program focused on child development and parenting education for teen parents. Staff work with the families until kids are age 3, preferably for the duration of 18-24 months. Sixpence is provided in collaboration with lincoln public schools. Family support services provide specialized family partners who work with kids

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 84.7%; rating input score 85
• Program expense ratio: 85.8%; rating input score 86
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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; 66th 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: 1.2%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.34; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.32; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 7.8%; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 4.4% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings