Dream Big Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 272204294
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2013–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2009
- Location
- Needham, MA, USA
- Phone
- 8574040124
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Fund Raising and Fund Distribution
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,219,961
- Expenses
- $1,255,680
- Assets
- $126,295
- Liabilities
- $52,650
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
8 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- LINDA M DRISCOLL (PRESIDENT & CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- LINDA M DRISCOLL (PRESIDENT & CEO): $241,090 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 provide girls and young women from low-income situations with the equipment, sports attire, athletic footwear, program fees, and leadership training needed for them to participate in sports and physical activities that contribute to their health, education and overall well-being
What it reported doing in 2024
Dream big! Leadership conference: during the year ended june 30, 2025 over 200 middle and high school female student athletes, from urban communities, attended the 10th annual dream big! Leadership conference. The conference provides opportunities for middle and high school female athletes from urban communities to meet and interact with accomplished women, former athletes, on a college campus while learning about the wide range of career and educational opportunities that are available to them in today's society. The students heard from women who have participated in sports and went on to become everything from presidents, nurses, and coaches to lawyers, non-profit leaders, business leaders, professional sports team owners, sports professionals, and professional and olympic athletes.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 44% for direct work, and 56% for grants.
- 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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 86
- Transparency & Controls: 79
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 19
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 92.2%; rating input score 92
- Program expense ratio: 89.6%; rating input score 90
- Fundraising efficiency: $12.76 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th 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: -2.9%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.1; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.42; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 19.2%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 11% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 10.5% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 12.1% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 92.2% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $241K · 8 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 46/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 28/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 5/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 19/100.