Population We

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
270214975
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2020, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Brentwood, TN, USA
Phone
6156184421
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Education N.E.C.
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$292,543
Expenses
$307,137
Assets
$63,055
Liabilities
$698

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MATTHEW WEST (PRESIDENT)
  • CHARLES PETERSEN (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DIANE LEEDE (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • ARDEAN VELDKAMP (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • SHAREN KING (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOE WEST (EXECUTIVE DIR.): $97,487 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Population we is a community of compassion joined together to bring the hope of jesus to the hurting, by connecting physical, emotional and spiritual needs to help people and resources that can help them heal.

What it reported doing in 2025

Injected the hope of jesus christ into people's stories by meeting their needs and guided them to the resources necessary to help them heal.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 72% for direct work, and 28% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 78
  • Accountability: 52
  • Sustainability: 21
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 99.2%; rating input score 99
  • Program expense ratio: 94.5%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 54%; rating input score 54; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 71.4%; rating input score 71; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.21; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 31.7%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.5% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 99.2% of revenue deployed · 94.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 7 board members independent · 2 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $290K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $97K · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 27 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2015 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 7 not reported.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 54/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 25/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 12/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 39/100.