Foundation Fund

What it reported doing in 2024

We provided brand ambassadors to raise awareness, increase the profile, and help raise resources for the following community nonprofit partners: LifeTown, Buckeye Cruise for Cancer, A Kid Again, After-School All-Stars, Boys and Girls Club, Big Brothers Big Sisters, USO, Nationwide Children's Hospital, and the Columbus Urban League. We had over one hundred student-athlete brand ambassadors serving multiple charity partners. Our premiere event was our Summer Gala in August. We partnered with Buckeye Cruise for Cancer to help raise awareness for the James Cancer Hospital. The brand ambassadors spent quality time, signing autographs, throwing the football, and having conversations about leadership. We also had many appearances at Lifetown where our brand ambassadors worked with the kids who would go there to learn life skills. Many of these kids come from under-resourced backgrounds and some are mentally handicapped. Our brand ambassadors volunteered in each simulated store such as a bank, art store, movie theatre, pet shop, doctor's office, and salon. They taught the kids how to budget money, talk to a doctor, and use art in therapeutic ways. The kids love having the brand ambassadors around and they visit multiple times a year. Our Co-founder Cardale Jones had a charity softball game raising money for Ohio State's The James Cancer Center. Our brand ambassadors attended the game, signed autographs, and interacted with cancer patients. It was a meaningful experience for everyone who attended. We have also had the Boys and Grisl Club and USO visit our brand ambassadors during practice. We had a football free kids football camp as well hosted by THE Foundation and our brand ambassadors played football with kids who are underprivileged. Many of our brand ambassadors visit the Nationwide Children's hospital on a frequent basis and they worked with the kids during The Memorial Golf Tournament at a golf clinic with Jack Nicklaus. We also hosted a Summer Big Brothers Big Sisters basketball shootout with our brand ambassadors. During Christmas, we had a gift-wrapping and delivery project by our brand ambassadors to kids who are terminally ill through the A Kid Again charity partner. This was a great way for our brand ambassadors to get out in the community and put a smile on many kids' faces. Our programs have already helped so many kids who, despite their struggles, look up to our brand ambassadors and we give them the opportunity to be together. Our brand ambassadors also love this experience as well. In addition to serving the nonprofit partners, we teach our brand ambassadors business and life skills including branding, marketing, accounting, contracts, taxes, and the importance of giving back to their community. Our ultimate mission is to forge life-long relationships between our brand ambassadors and our charity partners creating a lifetime of impact.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 81.4%; rating input score 81
• Program expense ratio: 86.3%; rating input score 86
• Fundraising efficiency: $7.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th 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: 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 5.7%; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.69; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 2.3%; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 105.9% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 52.3% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 37% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings