Daraja Education Fund

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
208283551
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2007
Location
San Rafael, CA, USA
Phone
4154568055
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Secondary, High School

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,059,280
Expenses
$2,660,267
Assets
$5,658,961
Liabilities
$8,155

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Elizabeth Lindquist (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Matthew McWright (Director): $103,133 total reported compensation
  • Jenni Doherty (Executive Dir.): $103,133 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To advocate for and advance the accessibility of quality education for all through sustainable school models.

What it reported doing in 2024

Daraja Education Foundation currently supports the Daraja Academy, a boarding high school for girls living in material poverty in Kenya. Each student is given a 4-year scholarship to cover tuition and boarding. Students are educated and become empowered to become community leaders. In 2024, 143 girls were participating in the program.The Daraja Academy Transition Program: A 5-month program for Daraja Academy graduates that focuses on life skills and entrepreneurship. It includes an internship and coursework in career exploration, computer skills, business plan writing, and community service. In 2024, 40 girls participated in the program.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 83% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 84% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 77
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.2%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 91.9%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: $35.93 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: 34.5%; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.13; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.8%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.3% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16.4% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 25.1% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.2% of revenue deployed · 91.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $103K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 7 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 38/100.