Tarrant County Association For the Blind
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 751228722
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Fort Worth, TX, USA
- Phone
- 8173323341
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Blind/Visually Impaired Centers
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $6,769,339
- Expenses
- $5,836,964
- Assets
- $11,505,362
- Liabilities
- $1,097,340
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
9 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- PLATT ALLEN III (PRESIDENT/CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- PLATT ALLEN III (PRESIDENT/CEO): $242,980 total reported compensation
- Roderic Nelson (Head of Sales): $110,783 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The mission of the lighthouse for the blind of fort worth is to encourage and empower blind and significantly visually impaired children, youth, adults and seniors to achieve their highest level of independence through competitive employment, specialized training and client services.
What it reported doing in 2024
Client Services - In addition to employing the blind, our Client Services team addresses the unique challenges that impact the blind community as a result of their disability. Client Services is administered by a staff of licensed/degreed and caring professionals who provide the following ongoing support at no charge to the visually disabled community: Independent Living Skills; Orientation and Mobility (White Cane Training); Assistive Technology; Braille Instruction; Support Groups; Resource Referral Network; and Cooking Without Looking Classes. In addition to providing basic support for those with a visual disability, our client services team plans events and social activities to inspire long-term relationships and connections, encourages the development of hobbies, and promotes exciting volunteer opportunities. Regardless of the level of vision loss, a customized program for each client is created based upon the initial assessment and expressed personal goals. Although vision loss creates barriers, many can be eliminated or minimized with access to information, training and education. The Lighthouse Promise: Companionship for Life to the Blind!
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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 85
- Transparency & Controls: 85
- Accountability: 90
- Sustainability: 63
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 76.9%; rating input score 77
- Fundraising efficiency: $8.22 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 13.8%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.97; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 6.1%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -1.4% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 0.8% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 0.9% per year; rating input score 100; 15th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 76.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $4.5M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $243K · 9 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 47/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 59/100.