The House of Ruth Maryland Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521100236
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Baltimore, MD, USA
Phone
4108890840
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Family Violence Shelters

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$11,553,220
Expenses
$12,365,902
Assets
$23,329,730
Liabilities
$1,888,258

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

Leadership & pay

31 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAMELA G COLBERT (PRESIDENT)
  • KAPPIE BOGART (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • SANDI TIMMINS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • SANDI TIMMINS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $245,260 total reported compensation
  • LISA NITSCH (DIRECTOR, TRAINING AND EDUCATION): $151,558 total reported compensation
  • JOSH SUTHERLAND (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER (PART YEAR)): $135,482 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 house of ruth Maryland leads the fight to end violence against women and their children by confronting the attitudes, behaviors and systems that perpetuate it, and by providing victims with the services necessary to rebuild their lives safely and free of fear.

What it reported doing in 2024

Residential safe shelter and housing services are provided through the 84-bed emergency and transitional shelter and through limited hotel placements. In fy 2025, 323 adult victims and 347 children received safe, clean shelter or other housing and related services including hot meals, service coordination, counseling, childcare services, health care services, basic toiletries and daily living items. Hrm's safe homes program is designed to provide in community transitional housing for individuals and families that have experienced intimate partner violence (ipv/dv). Services provided include medium term rental assistance and supportive services, including access to workforce development, service coordination, basic needs support, evidence based therapy, and legal representation for protective orders. Participation in all supportive services is 100% voluntary and no penalty to rent assistance will be assessed if survivors opt out of programming. The program serves ipv survivors who are currently homeless or at risk of homelessness due to intimate partner or sexual violence/ stalking.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 65% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 89% 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 88
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 36
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 91%; rating input score 91
  • Program expense ratio: 82.4%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: -7%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.89; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.08; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.9%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.7% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 91% of revenue deployed · 82.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 23 of 23 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $10.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $245K · 31 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 39 of 39 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 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: Fundraising efficiency scored 39/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.