Project Joy

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
472796137
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2018
Location
Palmdale, CA, USA
Phone
6616073976
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,877,989
Expenses
$2,107,969
Assets
$496,679
Liabilities
$496,679

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

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KIMBERLY WATSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • KIMBERLY WATSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $132,239 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Mission is to provide jobs and opportunities for the most vulnerable in the Antelope Valley. Vision is to break the cycle of generational poverty and the effects of systematic injustices.

What it reported doing in 2025

The El Dorado Program: The mentors at El Dorado also executed monthly events (PBIS festivals) involving educational games, arts, and crafts, and face painting for about 5-10 students per classroom for a total of 24 classrooms. and every Tuesday they exhibit structured play activities with the entire school taking turns coming outside. Mentors revived the schools Dance Team and started an after school art club. This advanced discipline, team work, built confidence and enabled a positive outlet via creative expression.

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 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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 93
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 15
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 96.2%; rating input score 96
  • Program expense ratio: 85.7%; rating input score 86
  • Fundraising efficiency: $587.58 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 15th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -12.2%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.24; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.3%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 39.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 32.3% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20.7% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 96.2% of revenue deployed · 85.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $572K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $132K · 4 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 12/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 4/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 47/100.