Stepping Stones Foundation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
860542919
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Prescott Valley, AZ, USA
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Neighborhood Centers

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,199,171
Expenses
$915,104
Assets
$2,488,026
Liabilities
$1,077,735

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • ALEXIS MILLER (VP OF OUTREACHDIRECTOR): $68,596 total reported compensation
  • DENISE MERRITT (VP OF HRSECRETARY): $68,566 total reported compensation
  • ALVA SANCHEZ (VP OF OPERATIONSTREASURER): $68,543 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

24/7 helpline, emergency shelter, transitional safe living program & 24/7 advocacy for women & their children who have been victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, economic exploitation/deprivation

What it reported doing in 2025

See sched o

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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 66
  • Sustainability: 62
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 73%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 95.4%; rating input score 95
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 60%; rating input score 60; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 23.7%; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.72; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.43; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.9%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 34% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 73% of revenue deployed · 95.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 10 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $873K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $69K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and related organizations
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 14/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.