The Exceptional Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
631096855
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Homewood, AL, USA
Phone
2058700776
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Community Recreational Centers

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,919,337
Expenses
$3,113,807
Assets
$7,359,956
Liabilities
$206,506

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

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SARA NEWELL (PRESIDENT AND CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • SARA NEWELL (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $194,928 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Social and recreational activities for exceptional people, people with mental and physical challenges, to enhance the quality of their lives and their family's lives.

What it reported doing in 2025

The exceptional foundation provides children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities unique opportunities to promote lasting friendships, healthy living, life skills, and community involvement. Services are provided through an adult day program, which runs daily from 7:50 a.m. To 5:30 p.m., an afterschool program for exceptional youth which is open from 3-5:30 p.m. On weekdays along with an 8-week youth summer camp that runs 5 days a week during the months of june and july. Program activities include exercise, games, music, dance, art, clubs, social time, and field trips to various destinations ranging from down the street to across the country.

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 97% 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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 85
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 93.2%; rating input score 93
  • Program expense ratio: 87.3%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 75th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -6.7%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.36; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.3%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 93.2% of revenue deployed · 87.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 23 of 23 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $195K · 24 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 41/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 49/100.