Mississippi Early Learning Alliance
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 832740260
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2019–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2018
- Location
- Jackson, MS, USA
- Phone
- 6623055699
- Rating
- 81
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Alliance/Advocacy Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $559,111
- Expenses
- $547,097
- Assets
- $996,496
- Liabilities
- $132,988
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
20 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ELIZABETH HARRIS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- ELIZABETH HARRIS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $96,417 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To build, strengthen, and support coalitions to advocate for systems change to improve early learning and child development outcomes in our state.
What it reported doing in 2024
This past year, the Mississippi early learning alliance (mela) worked alongside families, educators, businesses, and policymakers to strengthen the systems that support children from birth to age three.through the Mississippi forum for the future, the coalition mela leads as the backbone continued to grow by bringing together diverse voices, clarifying roles, and setting a common agenda for change and had 180 members at the end of june 2025. Mela also worked to build public will for infant and toddler issues. Thanks to technical assistance and funding from the national organization, zero to three, mela has been coordinating a collective message campaign, built for babies, that was launched in the fall of 2025. Mela supported partners, elevated child care, and paid family leave via op-eds in Mississippi media to increase awareness about the importance of the supporting babies during their earliest days and years. The result has been a stronger, more consistent voice for babies and families across the state.as importantly, mela worked to educate others about potential prenatal-to-five policy changes for our state. Mela kept the early childhood community connected through capitol day, the advocacy council, and legislative updates. Mela presented the labor force report to the Mississippi senate and supported the Mississippi economic council child care task force. Mela also developed a guide with the department of revenue for how businesses can take advantage of the Mississippi business child care tax credit that was passed in 2023.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 82% 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
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and revenue has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 77
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 45
- Growth: 20
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 78.5%; rating input score 79
- Program expense ratio: 78.8%; rating input score 79
- Fundraising efficiency: $23.35 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd 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: 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- 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: 2.1%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.82; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 17.6%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -8.1% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -9.3% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 25% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 78.5% of revenue deployed · 78.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $431K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $96K · 20 people listed
- Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 5 filing years from 2019 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 42/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.