Dreaming Out Loud Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
261286043
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2014
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2028002612
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,440,197
Expenses
$5,288,202
Assets
$7,137,299
Liabilities
$1,533,784

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHRISTOPHER BRADSHAW (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHRISTOPHER BRADSHAW (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $139,324 total reported compensation
  • DEVONTE HOWARD (FOOD HUB DIRECTOR): $113,873 total reported compensation
  • RACH COHEN (DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS (FROM 12/25)): $5,308 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Dreaming out loud's mission is to create economic opportunities for the dc metro regions marginalized community members through building a healthy, equitable food system.

What it reported doing in 2024

Dream program: the dream program serves under-resourced, community-based food entrepreneurs from across Washington, dc via a 16-week start-up business program. During the program, dc residents are trained in workshops ranging from business formalization and marketing to accessing capital. Additionally, dreaming out loud offers training and technical assistance to other local food entrepreneurs to grow community economic development. Dream program graduates join a community of local food entrepreneurs, coaches, and industry experts to help them to the next level. The dream partner farm infrastructure fund sub-granted $251,000 to marginalized farmers to help build infrastructure and capacity to produce food for communities across the region, supporting food access efforts in local communities.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 64% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 91% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 60
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 64.2%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 78.2%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $29.97 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 69; 69th 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: 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: 90%; rating input score 90; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 17.9%; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.35; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.21; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.9%; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 29.5% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 28.9% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 40.8% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 64.2% of revenue deployed · 78.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 10 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $4.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $139K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2016 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 12 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 48/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 42/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 54/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.