Federation for Children Wspecial Needs

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042557572
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Boston, MA, USA
Phone
6172367210
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Rehabilitative Medical Services

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$7,369,538
Expenses
$6,988,253
Assets
$5,394,943
Liabilities
$1,172,882

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

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOHN REICHENBACH (PRESIDENT)
  • PAMELA NOURSE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • DARLA GUNDLER (ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR): $151,975 total reported compensation
  • PAMELA NOURSE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $142,728 total reported compensation
  • JOSEPH PETNER (DIRECTOR): $625 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of the federation for children with special needs is to empower families, engage diverse communities, and eliminate barriers to improve life outcomes for all children.

What it reported doing in 2024

Fcsn provides information and referrals, education and training to families with children with disabilities and the professionals who serve them. We work with partner organizations to develop and disseminate best practices on family engagement. We held over 681 educational workshops on health and education related topics that were attended by families and professionals. We reached over 3,289 families in one-on-one information and referrals on special education, telehealth, and referrals to early intervention programs. We recruited and trained 744 special education surrogate parents. We hold conferences each year reaching 2,108 participants providing education, transition support, advocacy and networking opportunities. We provided leadership development training and support to 749 people. We provide information, education and support to families and professionals in spanish, chinese, portuguese, vietnamese and haitian, as well as english.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 73% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.8%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 83.9%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: $23.1 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • 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; 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: 5.2%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.77; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.2%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.3% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.5% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.8% of revenue deployed · 83.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 18 of 18 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $5.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $152K · 23 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $185K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 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.
  • 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: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 51/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 42/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 59/100.