Peers Envisioning and Engaging in Recovery Services

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
710867031
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Oakland, CA, USA
Phone
5108327337
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Mental Health Association

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,097,705
Expenses
$3,069,647
Assets
$1,479,938
Liabilities
$624,770

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jennifer Vanaman (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • Rolonda Jackson (Vice President)
  • MAX DERENONCOURT (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • NANCY LEE (FINANCE DIRECTOR): $124,367 total reported compensation
  • Jennifer Vanaman (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $112,448 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

PEERS mission is to build a diverse community of people with mental health experiences who provide culturally responsive, peer-based wellness strategies and work together to eliminate stigma and discrimination.

What it reported doing in 2024

Peers Envisioning and Engaging in Recovery Services (PEERS) Program Description and AccomplishmentsFY 2024-2025From July 2024 through June 2025, PEERS served a diverse group of 996 unduplicated participants across all of our programs, plus an additional 3,300 people reached through outreach, speaking engagement events, and webinars, whose names we did not capture. Peer support groups are the core of our work. In 2024-25, we offered 392 peer support group sessions, including: Taking Action for Whole Health and Wellbeing: Following an evidence-based curriculum, peers share stories, ideas and insights and come up with a personal plan for getting well and staying well.Youth Collective: Leadership development and wellness for young people.Buried in Treasures: An evidence-based curriculum focuses on support and skill-building to give participants tools to manage moderate to severe hoarding/cluttering.Special Messages: Peer support around hearing voices and receiving other messages that others dont.Hope & Faith: Peer support around wellness among members of African American faith communities.Healing Our Past and Expectations (HOPE): Peer support wellness groups adapted by and for Asian Americans from an evidence-based curriculum.Latine Community Mental Wellness: Peer support wellness groups adapted by and for Latine communities from an evidence-based curriculum.Black Wellness and Resilience: Peer support wellness groups adapted by and for African Americans from an evidence-based curriculum.Impact example: 92% of PEERS participants reported that the group or workshop helped them have hope.Participants gain new information, skills, and tools to support their wellness through PEERS programs. In 2024-25, we offered 79 workshops and presentations, served 53 older adults through individual services, and reached 316 community members with anti-stigma speaking engagements, including: Transition-age youth wellness workshops: Youth-developed workshops on multiple topics.Other wellness workshops: Presented where community members gather; topics included youth mental health, the SAMHSA Eight Dimensions of Wellness, spirituality and peer support, and more.Lift Every Voice and Speak: Speakers bureau members tell their recovery stories in the community.Program for Encouraging Active and Rewarding Lives (PEARLS): A holistic, evidence-based service focused on skill building and problem-solving that supports isolated older adults who have depression.Impact example: 93% of participants see themselves using what they learned from PEERS in the future and 92% understand more about their mental health and wellness.Leadership development among people with mental health challenges combats internalized stigma. In 2024-25, PEERS offered the following leadership development opportunities: Lift Every Voice and Speak: Speakers bureau members develop public speaking and advocacy skills and tell their stories in the community.Taking Action Facilitator Training and Mentoring: Certification and ongoing support for peers leading Taking Action groups.Everyone Counts Campaign: Latine Community Mental Wellness Fellows group plans and leads anti-stigma efforts.Impact example: 85% reported that they feel better about their life as a result of PEERS services.Positive images and stories about people with mental health experiences help change community members attitudes. In 2024-25, PEERS reached 316 community members through anti-stigma speaking engagements: Lift Every Voice and Speak: Speakers bureau members tell their stories in the community.Media: Email blasts, blog posts, social media, and traditional media stories countering stigma.Community Outreach: Disseminating anti-stigma messages through visibility at community events.Impact example: 95% of audience members in speakers bureau presentations reported that after the presentation, they feel people with mental health experiences can grow, change, and recover.Peers Organizing Community Change (POCC)Peers Organizing Com

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 95% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 30
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78.4%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 79.1%; rating input score 79
  • Fundraising efficiency: $86.83 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • 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: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.9%; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.48; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.42; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.7%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.9% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 78.4% of revenue deployed · 79.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $124K · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 37/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 17/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 38/100.