Early Milestones Colorado

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
471929974
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Denver, CO, USA
Phone
7205734718
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Fund Raising and Fund Distribution

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$805,381
Expenses
$1,923,304
Assets
$2,126,963
Liabilities
$52,687

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • JENNIFER STEDRON (EXECUTIVE DI): $191,420 total reported compensation
  • JENNIFER NASH (DIR. OF OPER): $151,081 total reported compensation
  • KACEE MILLER (SR DIRECTOR): $131,466 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Early milestones Colorado is a nonprofit organization that advances success for young children across the state by accelerating innovation, use of best practices and systemic change. Early milestones envisions a Colorado in which every child is valued, healthy and prepared to thrive in school and in life.

What it reported doing in 2025

Early learning and development (146) - early milestones is providing a two years out evaluation for circle and receiving a report on early child mental health next stes. Expenses 79,616. Including grants of 0. Revenue 9,999. Colorado statewide parent coalition (155) - cspc funding supports the rural care network. The rural care network offers community building opportunities, training, and funding for rural family, friend, and neighbor providers (ffns) through in-person gatherings and monthly virtual meetings. Initial convenings were in alamosa and durange. The network is currently funded through june 2026. Expenses 39,092. Including grants of 0. Revenue 0. Health & well-being systems (130) - systems building efforts for early childhood health and well-being including research and stakeholder collaboration and engagement. Expenses 38,970. Including grants of 0. Revenue 0. Other cross function, demonstration, and research programs. Expenses 123,204. Including grants of 15,500. Revenue 40,375.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 75% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 68% for direct work, and 32% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 57.1%; rating input score 57
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.84 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • 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: 95.5%; rating input score 96; 46th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -138.8%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.11; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 30.3%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.1% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16.4% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 12.8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 57.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $191K · 16 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 28 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2015 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 11 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 7 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 57/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 46/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 8/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 51/100.