Chicago Cares Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363777709
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Chicago, IL, USA
Phone
3127800800
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Community, Neighborhood Development

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,605,921
Expenses
$2,750,833
Assets
$3,365,637
Liabilities
$346,949

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ROSIE DRUMGOOLE (CEO)
  • Russell Toney (President)
  • Stacy Collins (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • ROSIE DRUMGOOLE (CEO): $171,431 total reported compensation
  • KELLY PATTERMANN (SR DIR PEOPLE & OP): $137,934 total reported compensation
  • LYANA FUNCHES (DIRECTOR PROGRAMS): $106,303 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Chicago Cares, Inc. mobilizes volunteers to build a stronger, more unified Chicago.

What it reported doing in 2025

COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAM - a subdivision of Chicago Cares Programs department focused on building and maintaining strong, mutually beneficial relationships with community-based organizations on the south, west, and northwest sides of the City. The Community Relations team is focused on identifying potential partners and managing relationships with lead partners in each community that Chicago Cares works in so that Chicago Cares can continue to offer best-in-class community-driven service that is aligned to the communitys own plans and intentions.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 95% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 78
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 67.1%; rating input score 67
  • Program expense ratio: 62.4%; rating input score 62
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.14 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 88.2%; rating input score 88; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 98.2%; rating input score 98; 40th 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: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.6%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.22; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 15.1%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -3.7% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.9% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 67.1% of revenue deployed · 62.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 22 of 22 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $1.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $171K · 25 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $108K reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 35 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2014 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 5 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 15/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 14/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 41/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 22/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.