The Hope Project Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 352270341
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2016–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2015, Form 990-T 2025
- Location
- Muskegon, MI, USA
- Phone
- 2317478555
- Rating
- 73
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Centers to Support the Independence of Specific Populations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $616,232
- Expenses
- $595,053
- Assets
- $765,043
- Liabilities
- $40,412
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- KAREN DUER (PRESIDENT)
- JEFF MARTINEAU (CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- SARAH JOHNSON (EXECUTIVE DI): $60,115 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Our mission is to support the healing of girls and women who have survived sex trafficking and prevent further cases through mentoring and education.
What it reported doing in 2025
The hope project provides case management, counseling, therapy groups, recovery groups, support groups, recovery coaching, hygiene products, housing, exta support, and refer appropriately. We also have a mentoring program for female sex traficking survivors and girls, 11 to 25 years old, more vulnerable to sex trafficking. Our main office is in muskegon county and we have a satellite office in newaygo county. Housing: the hope project has a healing home called, "rays of hope", for women who have survived sex trafficking. They are in the process of opening a rehabilitation home for youth female survivors of sex trafficking. Awareness: the hope project provides education on human trafficking through awareness events, panel videos, and forums at high schools, churches, universities, radio and television, and community organizations. The hope project has under it's umbrella the lakeshore human trafficking task force, and also the hope project - newaygo county human trafficking task force. The hope project is a member of the Michigan human trafficking task force, muskegon lakeshore chamber of commerce, muskegon domestic violence and sexual assault task force and are involved in other local organizations. They are a resource to west Michigan agencies and local residents for statistics, training, and referrals on the issue of human trafficking.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 75% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 63
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 67
- Sustainability: 43
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 64.3%; rating input score 64
- Program expense ratio: 66%; rating input score 66
- Fundraising efficiency: $16.82 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 71.4%; rating input score 71; 18th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 3.4%; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.29; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 10.1%; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 12.1% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 15.9% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 16.2% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 64.3% of revenue deployed · 66% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 5 of 7 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $393K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $60K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2016 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: 2 of 7 not reported.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 50/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 40/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 37/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 42/100.