Lancaster County First Steps to School Readiness Partnership
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 571097819
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Lancaster, SC, USA
- Phone
- 8032868000
- Rating
- 89
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Alliance/Advocacy Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,866,794
- Expenses
- $3,754,492
- Assets
- $544,364
- Liabilities
- $397,196
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
13 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- TOMEIKO WRIGHT (EXECUTIVE DI): $18,173 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Section 59-152-10 of the South Carolina code established the South Carolina first steps to school readiness program, which is a comprehensive, results-oriented initiative for improving early childhood development by providing, through local partnerships, public and private funds, and support for high- quality early childhood development and educations services for children by providing support for their families' efforts toward enabling their children to reach school ready to succeed. Our mission is that every South Carolina child will arrive at kindergarten ready to succeed.
What it reported doing in 2024
Parenting support: incredible years- a series of group-based interventions for parents, children and teachers that are designed to increase social and emotional fitness and prevent, reduce and treat behavioral and emotional problems in children up to age 12. This program targets parents and teachers working primarily with children ages 3-8, as well as children directly. Dolly parton's imagination library- a book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth until they begin school, regardless of family income.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 88% 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 86
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 33
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 96.3%; rating input score 96
- Program expense ratio: 99.2%; rating input score 99
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
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: 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: NotApplicable
- 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: 2.9%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.14; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.73; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0.5%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 11.6% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 12.4% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 96.3% of revenue deployed · 99.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $3.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $18K · 13 people listed
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $282K reported
- Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 4/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 44/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 12/100.