North Star Fund Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 132950801
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2014–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- New York, NY, USA
- Phone
- 2126209110
- Rating
- 82
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $8,257,296
- Expenses
- $17,003,458
- Assets
- $22,483,630
- Liabilities
- $2,159,057
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
28 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JENNIFER CHING (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
- MANNY VAZ (CPR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- JENNIFER CHING (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $325,060 total reported compensation
- JUNIE FRANCOIS PSWARAYI (DIR. OF FINANCE AND OPERATIONS): $196,997 total reported compensation
- KELLIE TERRY (PHILANTHROPY PROGRAMS DIR): $195,341 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
North star fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting community organizing in New York. Founded in 1979, we award grants to emerging grassroots groups and organize people and philanthropic efforts in support of social justice.
What it reported doing in 2024
In fy '25, north star fund supported community organizing in New York through awarding grants to emerging grassroots groups and organizing people and philanthropic efforts in support of social justice.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 91% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 77% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- 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: 85
- Transparency & Controls: 76
- Accountability: 97
- Sustainability: 25
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 82.2%; rating input score 82
- Fundraising efficiency: $5.29 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 96.4%; rating input score 96; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 95.2%; rating input score 95; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -105.9%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.32; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 8.8%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 10.8% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 82.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 20 of 21 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $14M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $325K · 28 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $348K reported
- Consistency: 37 of 38 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 154 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 144 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 19/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 34/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 59/100.