The Hope Center Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
721472498
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Gretna, LA, USA
Phone
5043634034
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,158,957
Expenses
$4,098,946
Assets
$462,976
Liabilities
$71,911

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • WILBERT R WALKER (PRESIDENT/DI)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHERYL MAGEE (EXECUTIVE DI): $187,483 total reported compensation
  • SHAWN BAX (DEPUTY DIREC): $169,295 total reported compensation
  • CHANTAL WALKER (FISCAL MANAG): $101,545 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 hope center, inc. Empowers impoverished individuals from the greater new orleans metropolitan area to become economically stable through specialized technical training, education initiatives, and employment.

What it reported doing in 2024

Hope center currently services veterans in an effort to end homelessness or prevent homelessness. This is accomplished through funding for the dept. Of veteran affairs homelessness programs. The program provides emergency housing and rapid rehousing placement for veterans and their families. Services include housing navigation, income supports, connecting with va medical services, food, emergency supplies, utility assistance, rental payment assistance, tenant incentives, landlord incentives, daily living services, transportation, healthcare navigation, legal services, and financial coaching.the organization received a suicide prevention award from the va office of mental health to assist veterans and active duty service members and their families with crisis assistance and connecting to mental health services in the prevention of suicide among former and current service members. The hope center, inc. Served 476 veteran households in 2024.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 95% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 69% for direct work, and 31% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 56
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 94.2%; rating input score 94
  • Program expense ratio: 95.6%; rating input score 96
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 40%; rating input score 40; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 1.4%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.11; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.16; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.6%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.2% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -13.4% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 94.2% of revenue deployed · 95.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 5 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $187K · 8 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 40/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 39/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 3/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 50/100.