Kids Join the Fight

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
863590840
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Nashville, TN, USA
Phone
2058378132
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,268,452
Expenses
$1,220,163
Assets
$1,593,979
Liabilities
$1,619

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • RAINER MADIGAN (MANAGING DIRECTOR): $80,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To empower kids to join the fight against pediatric cancer by raising money to provide local care for pediatric cancer patients and their families and to fund research to cure childhood cancer.

What it reported doing in 2025

Cure kids initiative - the cure kids initiative is a group of foundations and caregivers coming together to support a preventative care approach to medulloblastoma, with other brain cancers to hopefully follow. The initiative is led by dr. Michael taylor from Texas childrens hospital and seeks to identify a blood biomarker that will help to identify perls (persistent rhombic lip cells) that could likely turn into medulloblastoma in a child. Similar to screening for colon polyps, the end goal would be the close monitoring through imaging and potentially surgical removal if deemed safe for the child.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 93% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 49
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87%; rating input score 87
  • Program expense ratio: 90.4%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $69.17 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 80; 80th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • 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: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 3.8%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.31; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.6%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 75% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 41.7% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 35.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 87% of revenue deployed · 90.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 8 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $80K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2021 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 42/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 47/100.