The Foundation for Santa Barbara City College

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
953234551
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Santa Barbara, CA, USA
Phone
8057304401
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$10,729,825
Expenses
$6,217,825
Assets
$104,006,570
Liabilities
$5,174,742

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BOBBI ABRAM (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • WENDY READ (PRESIDENT (AS OF 07/24))
  • LAURIE ASHTON (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ERIKA ENDRIJONAS (EX-OFFICIO - SBCC): $345,324 total reported compensation
  • CAROLA SMITH (EX-OFFICIO - SBCC): $248,255 total reported compensation
  • PALOMA ARNOLD (EX-OFFICIO - SBCC): $235,818 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 sbcc foundation fuels the excellence of santa barbara city college by engaging the community, building relationships, and inviting the generosity of donors. The resources raised and managed by the foundation enrich college programs, remove barriers, and empower students to succeed.

What it reported doing in 2024

The sbcc foundation created the sbcc promise in 2016, to make our community's college accessible and affordable to all recent local high school graduates. The sbcc promise offers two years of comprehensive support (covering all required fees, books and supplies) to any local student who enrolls full time at sbcc in the fall or spring semester following the completion of their secondary education within the sbcc district. In the 2024-2025 academic year, more than 1,500 sbcc promise students were enrolled. Research on college achievement correlates a student's chance of success with early enrollment, full-time student status, and access to academic counseling and support. The sbcc promise includes all of these elements, providing $2.2 million in support to sbcc promise students in the 2024-2025 academic year. In 2024-2025, ab19 funding was provided by the sbcc so the foundation's costs were reduced by $1 million.

Operating model

Revenue model
Investment-supported. 71% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 86% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most filed governance safeguards are in place. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 49
  • Transparency & Controls: 72
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 82
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 47.4%; rating input score 47
  • Program expense ratio: 62.6%; rating input score 63
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.49 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 89.5%; rating input score 89; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • 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: 98.9%; rating input score 99; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 68.8%; rating input score 69; 12th 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: 42.1%; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 16.73; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.3%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.3% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.1% per year; rating input score 100; 43rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 47.4% of revenue deployed · 62.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 16 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $3.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $345K · 20 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $506K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 38 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 47/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.