Na Kama Kai
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 262034996
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2013–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2011
- Location
- Waianae, HI, USA
- Phone
- 8088649164
- Rating
- 83
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,021,743
- Expenses
- $1,113,031
- Assets
- $651,125
- Liabilities
- $56,566
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
11 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- DUANE DESOTO (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
Highest reported compensation
- DUANE DESOTO (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $110,000 total reported compensation
- MATTHEW KAUWE (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $105,000 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
We empower children by connecting our keiki to the kia and 'aina to nurture a deeper sense of aloha and kuleana for the natural environment and themselves.
What it reported doing in 2024
Na kama kai provides free daily after school and school break services for children 7-17 in waianae. Children have a safe and consistent place to gather, access turtoring, receive free daily meals, and receive mentorship in ocean activities like swimming, surfing and paddling. Na kama kai provides leadership mentorship through its alakai teen mentorship program to on average 20 youth per year. They learn traditional hawaiian practices relating to the ocean and participate in culture exchanges in other countries like tahiti and brazil. Na kama kai provides free ocean clinics to communities around the state of Hawaii once a month. Keiki ages 2-17 learn about ocean safety, stewardhip and hawaiian culture. They also receive one on one mentorship in the ocean during their 2 hour session.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 82% 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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 79
- Transparency & Controls: 90
- Accountability: 91
- Sustainability: 23
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 86%; rating input score 86
- Program expense ratio: 81.3%; rating input score 81
- Fundraising efficiency: $9.73 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 98.8%; rating input score 99; 47th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -8.9%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.59; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.09; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 19.3%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 18.3% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 18.7% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 20.5% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 86% of revenue deployed · 81.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $904K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $110K · 11 people listed
- Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2013 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 4 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 37/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 27/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 44/100.