Chazak

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371972043
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2020
Location
New York, NY, USA
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development – Religious Leadership
Affiliation
Judaism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,137,494
Expenses
$3,334,186
Assets
$1,495,964
Liabilities
$20,684

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

People named in this filing

  • REUBEN IBRAGIMOV (COO)
  • SHLOMO FARHI (Chairman)
  • MOSHE LEVY (Executive Dir.)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

Chazak is a global Jewish organization that inspires, equips, and unites young people through the profound wisdom of the Torah and the rich Sephardic heritage. Within our diverse community, we strive to foster fulfilling lives and impactful leadership. Our initiatives are founded on our core values of education, leadership, and community, and we provide in-depth exploration of Jewish traditions and the Sephardic ethos. Our initiatives go beyond borders, including retreats and trips all over the world, fostering cultural exchange, and promoting a better understanding of our common heritage. We remain committed to our mission of developing leaders, fostering unity, and ensuring a vibrant future for the Sephardic Jewish community and the world at large.

What it reported doing in 2024

We are proud to reflect on the enriching 2023 Chazak Pesach experience. This one-of-a-kind journey was designed for Sephardic community members to celebrate and share their rich heritage and distinctive cuisine during the Passover holidays. Our carefully planned itinerary included a variety of lectures and programs for both adults and children to help us better understand and appreciate Sephardic traditions. This experience was more than just a vacation it was a chance for families to reconnect with their roots, participate in meaningful cultural exchanges, and create lasting memories. We are honored to have been a part of this journey of discovery and community building, reinforcing the values and traditions that make our Sephardic heritage so vibrant and alive.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 95% 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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 68
  • Accountability: 58
  • Sustainability: 33
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 97.4%; rating input score 97
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 81%; rating input score 81; 22nd 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 0 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -6.3%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.45; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 58.3% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 22.9% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 0.1% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 97.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 0 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $3.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 30 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 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.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 8 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 15/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.