Kern Dance Alliance

What it reported doing in 2025

Special Events: SHINE for Girls: SHINE is an innovative, curriculum-based program that utilizes dance to teach math to middle school girls while boosting their overall self-confidence. SHINE combines formal dance training with rigorous math instruction to improve girls math scores and spark their interest in STEAM.SHINE 2025 was offered for FREE during a summer camp, July 21 July 25 from 8:00 am 1:00 pm at the dance studio at Garces Memorial High School. The innovative program taught girls concepts such as probability and statistics, order of operations, fractions, decimals, pre-algebra, and geometry. Girls participated in one-on-one mentoring sessions, small group tutoring, kinesthetic learning activities like dance, and also learned from women in STEAM guest speakers.SHINE at Valley Oaks was offered FREE to students over the course of 10 weeks. The program ran Thursdays from 1pm 3pm January 23 March 27th, 2025 in the Valley Oaks Bakersfield campus Warehouse. The innovative program taught students concepts such as probability and statistics, order of operations, fractions, decimals, pre-algebra, and geometry.Open Stage: KDA was thrilled to have hosted the third annual Open Stage 2025, an initiative aimed at bringing artists, particularly dancers, to the renowned Historic Bakersfield Fox Theater to do what they do best perform on stage! Thanks to the support from the Fox Theater, participants had the opportunity to rent the stage for 1-2 hours absolutely FREE on Sunday, November 30. This unique opportunity provided creatives with access to the theaters technical staff and amenities. Artists curated experiences that resonated with them and utilized the stage in ways that nurtured their creativity. MEMORYMOVES: DANCE + THERAPY: KDA and the Alzheimers Disease Association of Kern County, Inc. (ADAKC) were proud to announce the return of the MemoryMOVES?: DANCE + THERAPY program for memory-impaired clients. The organizations geared up to offer a program that uses Dance/Movement Therapy as a mode of creative expression and empowerment to improve cognitive function and quality of life for clients experiencing Alzheimers disease and memory loss.Led by a registered Dance/Movement Therapist from the American Dance Movement Therapy Association, Elena Rezai, MemoryMOVES was a 5 day Dance/Movement Therapy program working with the Alzheimers and Dementia population at ADAKC. The program utilized a Dance/Movement Therapist (DMT) to work with 35 enrolled participants. Groups met daily from 1:00-2:00pm. Groups included all clients that were present each day, and staff assisted to make sure that all clients were part of the group. Clients ranged from fairly high functioning (more ambulatory, with higher cognitive functioning,) to lower functioning, (low range of motion or confined to a wheelchair, with severe memory impairment.)12 DAYS of GIVING: KDAs 12 Days of Giving campaign was a holiday-inspired initiative designed to celebrate the spirit of dance, generosity, and community during the festive season. Drawing from the classic 12 Days of Christmas theme, the program ran from December 1 to December 12, 2025, offering daily giveaways to participants while raising support for KDAs mission to promote arts and dance education, performance, and accessibility in Californias Central Valley. All proceeds and donations from the campaign directly benefited KDAs core programs, including dance scholarships, workshops, and community events.As KDA Executive Director Andrea Hansen stated, Dance has the power to unite, heal, and inspire. Our 12 Days of Giving campaign is a way to give back to our community while making dance accessible to everyone. The campaign encouraged broad participation through the KDA Instagram channel and via the dedicated page at kerndance.org/GIVE. Prizes were thoughtfully curated to inspire movement and artistic engagement, fostering joy and inclusivity for dancers, families, and the wider Kern County community.Taste of Dance - Ita

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 67.9%; rating input score 68
• Program expense ratio: 76.3%; rating input score 76
• Fundraising efficiency: $91.38 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Fail
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 11%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.32; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -24.2% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 28.5% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings