Greenwood Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
811990763
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-PF 2022
Location
Chicago, IL, USA
Phone
3122783215
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,606,815
Expenses
$2,435,565
Assets
$3,209,626
Liabilities
$28,491

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KWESI SMITH (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • KWESI SMITH (CEO): $176,583 total reported compensation
  • HEIDI ALBERT (DIRECTOR OF PEOPLE AND CULTURE): $164,978 total reported compensation
  • VIRGIL JONES (DIRECTOR OF MAJOR GIFTS): $161,041 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Greenwood project prepares talented black and latino college students for high-trajectory financial services careers through early exposure, rigorous training, and high-touch coaching.

What it reported doing in 2024

Greenwood project's college program prepares underrepresented college students for careers in financial services through year-round, industry-aligned training. The program is built on three core differentiators: professional clarity, high-touch coaching, and fluency in the unwritten rules of corporate america. Fy25 was a pivotal year of program development. The organization launched two new specialized academies, the investment banking academy and the fintech academy, joining the existing sales & relationships academy to give scholars structured pathways aligned to their career interests. Fy25 was also the final year of the summer-only training format, completing the organization's transition to a fully virtual, 12-month delivery model. During the year the stream foundation, a Texas nonprofit, dissolved and transferred its assets and obligations to the greenwood project expanding the organization's footprint and capacity

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 50
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 61.6%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 65.3%; rating input score 65
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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; 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: 6.6%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.32; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 31%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.2% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 61.6% of revenue deployed · 65.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $177K · 16 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 12 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 55/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.