Hillside Children's Center
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 160743039
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Aug 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Rochester, NY, USA
- Phone
- 585-256-7500
- Rating
- 85
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Children's, Youth Services
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $144,254,396
- Expenses
- $141,281,276
- Assets
- $127,087,039
- Liabilities
- $60,726,211
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
23 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- MARIA CRISTALLI (PRESIDENT AND CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- JOHN LYNCH (MEDICAL DIRECTOR): $480,877 total reported compensation
- MARIA CRISTALLI (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $452,899 total reported compensation
- CHRISTOPHER PETERSON (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $376,486 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Hillside provides community-based services, education, and residential treatment to positively impact lives, in partnership with youth and families who have experienced trauma. Learn more about Hillside’s commitment to family-driven care. Who pays for Hillside services? Can I donate to Hillside? Hillside services are paid for by a wide range of generous public funders and private donors. For many of our services there is no fee to the family. In some cases, eligible families may receive services as covered by Medicaid. Private donations from individuals, businesses and foundations provide essential support that advances Hillside’s mission. To give to Hillside today, visit our Donate Now page.
What it reported doing in 2024
General and special education programs for residential and day students, in a variety of school settings, helping kids learn how to manage a variety of serious distractions, beyond the capabilities of most schooling systems, while preparing for adulthood. Through these services, 460 families were served during the fiscal year ended june 30, 2025.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Other-operating. 95% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
- 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
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 79
- Transparency & Controls: 90
- Accountability: 96
- Sustainability: 43
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 87.6%; rating input score 88
- Program expense ratio: 88.7%; rating input score 89
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- 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: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 45th 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: 2.1%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.9; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.48; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 1.7%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 2% per year; rating input score 100; 15th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2.4% per year; rating input score 100; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 1.8% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 4 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 87.6% of revenue deployed · 88.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 16 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $125.3M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $481K · 23 people listed · 6 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $3.2M reported
- Consistency: 33 of 34 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 36/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.