Eckerd Connects

Legal name: Eckerd Youth Alternatives Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
592551416
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Aug 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2022
Location
Clearwater, FL, USA
Phone
7274612990
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Children's, Youth Services

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$212,502,625
Expenses
$210,913,907
Assets
$109,741,276
Liabilities
$24,157,749

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

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • L DAVID DENNIS (PRESIDENT & CEO (THRU 6/30/25))
  • MICHAEL SMITH (PRESIDENT & CEO (AS OF 6/16/25)))

Highest reported compensation

  • L DAVID DENNIS (PRESIDENT & CEO (THRU 6/30/25)): $891,562 total reported compensation
  • RICHARD SEMANCIK (COO (THRU 6/6/25)): $391,359 total reported compensation
  • ALEX REED (COO (AS OF 6/7/25)): $357,026 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Empowering individuals to overcome barriers and achieve success. Eckerd Connects is a national non-profit dedicated to _transforming_ lives and _strengthening_ communities through workforce development, child and family services, and Job Corps education and training. What began as a single therapeutic wilderness camp nearly 60 years ago has become a nationwide network of programs creating opportunities and lasting change. Each year, we help more than 250,000 children, youth, and adults build brighter futures. Our mission is simple yet powerful: to connect people to the education, career, and support they need to thrive. Across 20 states and the District of Columbia, our teams deliver community-based, data-driven services that meet individuals where they a.

What it reported doing in 2024

Community based - these programs enable at risk children and youth ages birth through 23 to remain safely in their homes and receive services in their own communities while still addressing complex emotional and behavioral needs. These cost-effective services divert at-risk youth from detention and residential programs and also support their successful return from residential placement to their families and communities. Some of these programs are designed to target youth and adults in need of assistance in obtaining skills to become employable. These programs are located in Florida, North Carolina, Louisiana and Kansas and serve approximately 5,000 children.(continued on schedule o)transitional services - these programs assist the family in readjusting to the youth's return from a residential placement. The programs work with the youth to facilitate a positive change in their behavior and address any family issues and needs with the goal of improving family functionality. These programs are located in Florida and serve approximately 200 youth.prevention services - these programs promote healthy child development and strengthen families by intervening early in children's lives to ensure lifelong success. These programs are located in Florida.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 64% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 91
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 89.8%; rating input score 90
  • Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1,637.94 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Scored; rating input score 0

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: 0.7%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.52; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.8%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 89.8% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $189.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $892K · 24 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $3.5M reported
  • Consistency: 41 of 41 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 12 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 36/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Related-party transparency scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 19/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.