First Place for Youth

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
943341034
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Oakland, CA, United States
Phone
510.272.0979
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Foster Care

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$34,357,426
Expenses
$31,681,437
Assets
$19,116,571
Liabilities
$7,905,447

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

Leadership & pay

28 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • THOMAS LEE (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • THOMAS LEE (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $321,138 total reported compensation
  • EMILY JENSEN (CHIEF IMPACT AND PEOPLE OFFICER): $256,681 total reported compensation
  • JANE MACHIN (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $224,260 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

First Place for Youth is committed to protecting your privacy. Stay connected to our mission and learn how you can continue to support foster youth via our monthly newsletter! Footer Newsletter Name. The My First PlaceTM Program My First Place is a nationally recognized education and employment program that provides housing and case management for transition-age foster youth aged 18 to 25. Participants are supported by a Youth Advocate, Education and Employment Specialist, and Housing Specialist. Access to post-secondary education coaching, apprenticeships and individualized supports help make sense of work and school. By helping foster youth enter adulthood with jobs that earn a living wage, this program fosters a sense of permanency and builds skills to be self-sufficient in the long term.

What it reported doing in 2024

My first place, a transitional housing program, provides stability for current and former foster youth through safe, affordable housing, intensive case management, and advocacy and support services. Youth receive support with move-in costs, rent, food, self-reliance planning, life skills training, health and mental health advocacy, transportation assistance, and employment and education services. Steps to success is the education and employment program of my first place, providing current and former foster youth with intensive one-on-one counseling and support in completing their high school diploma or general educational development certificate, enrolling in college, securing financial aid, and tutoring. Steps to success also supports youth with employment assistance, career planning, and in building their workplace skills, including job search and job retention. The program is operating in six counties in California (alameda, contra costa, los angeles, san francisco, santa clara, and solano) and in the state of Mississippi.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 70% 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.
  • 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. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78.5%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 84.9%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $26.33 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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; 66th 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: 7.8%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.6; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.41; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.9%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.3% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 3 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 78.5% of revenue deployed · 84.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $26.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $321K · 28 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.1M reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 11 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

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

  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 20/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 35/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 36/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.