Children's Aid

What it reported doing in 2024

The youth division focuses on ages 5 to adolescence/young adult and promotes physical, social, and emotional well-being as key factors for high school graduation and college success. Youth programs operate in children's aid locations and in full-service community school partnerships, and engage children, families, schools and communities through an integrated focus on academics, services, supports, and opportunities. (continued on schedule o) youth (continued)core services include after-school programs in children's aid community centers and schools, summer camps, athletic programming, and through the national center for community schools, which provides technical assistance to develop the community school model nationally and internationally. We served 10,777 youth across the youth division during fy25.our older youth services include the carrera-adolescent pregnancy prevention program, which meets the top-tier evidence of effectiveness standards by the coalition for evidence-based policy. Services also include the college and career access and success program providing assistance to help young people make post-secondary pathways (college and/or career) attainable, the hope leadership academy, which provides wrap-around supports and develops leadership through a peer education model, and teen employment services, such as summer youth employment program and corporate internships. During the 24-25 school year, across all 5 of our centers and 15 of our k-8 community schools, we screened 2,682 students using a validated social emotional learning instrument, the dessa-mini. We also screened youth found by the mini to be in the "need for instruction" category with the full dessa. By the spring, 89% demonstrated "typical or strong social emotional skills", 5-percentage points over national norms. 59% of youth in "need for instruction" improved to "typical or strength by the spring and 78% increased their score. 287 middle school youth in our centers and select youth in our high schools completed the dessa student self report. By spring, 72% demonstrated "typical or strong social emotional skills", a 5-percentage point increase from the fall. In our high schools, 100% of our cohort 2025 graduates had a post-secondary plan and 100% of youth whose plan includes attending college applied and were accepted to at least one college.we support youth through programs at 19 community schools, five community centers, our wagon road respite camp in chappaqua, New York and a range of college and career services for youth aged 18 to 22. The youth division also provides management and technical support to the children's aid college prep charter school, a k-8 charter school with approximately 600 enrolled scholars.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 89.1%; rating input score 89
• Program expense ratio: 80.6%; rating input score 81
• Fundraising efficiency: $5.73 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 28th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 15.2%; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.98; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.26; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 1.7%; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 28th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings