Dream Alive Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
352153384
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Indianapolis, IN, USA
Phone
3177626353
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,876,111
Expenses
$1,375,405
Assets
$2,686,640
Liabilities
$35,006

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHARLES AKINBOLA (BOARD PRESIDENT)
  • TARIK GLENN (PRESIDENT EMERITUS)
  • ERIC MULLER (PRESIDENT & CEO)
  • STEPHEN SMITH (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERIC MULLER (PRESIDENT & CEO): $60,752 total reported compensation
  • STEPHEN SMITH (VICE PRESIDENT): $43,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To help vulnerable youth break the cycle of poverty by providing mentoring and career development programs for 6 continual years from 7th through 12 grade.

What it reported doing in 2025

21st annual dream christmas celebration: on december 17, 2025, dream alive hosted its annual dream christmas celebration at gainbridge fieldhouse. We hosted roughly 600 guests and provided christmas gifts to 106 children from theodore potter spanish immersion school 74 and brightlane learning. Throughout november and december, dream alive scholars participated in a budgeting workshop, a shopping day at meijer to purchase gifts for their sponsored child and a wrapping party at one of dream alive's corporate partners' office to wrap their presents. All dream christmas guests enjoyed dinner provided by chick-fil-a, music from a local dj, balloon twisting, airbrush tattoos, a 360 photo booth, cookie decorating, ornament crafts and photos with santa.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 90% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 70
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 68
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.3%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 83%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $49.02 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 75; 75th 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: 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; 64th 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: 26.7%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.95; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.5%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 21.2% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 23.9% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 35.3% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.3% of revenue deployed · 83% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $61K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2016 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 44/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.