The Partners Program

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
202973102
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Oakland, CA, USA
Phone
5104202359
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$540,437
Expenses
$502,053
Assets
$4,832,656
Liabilities
$319,996

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • MONIQUE DEVANE (HEAD OF SCHOOL): $889,938 total reported compensation
  • SAMUEL BELTRAN (DIR. OF THE PARTNERS PROGRAM): $173,094 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We provide transformative programs that bolster academic achievement and improve access to educational opportunities and resources for under-resourced oakland public middle school students. To do this, we bring middle schoolers together with trained high school and college mentors, with the goal of furthering educational equity and success for all.

What it reported doing in 2024

Summer academy (sa) program: the 40th consecutive partners summer academy at college prep ran from june 2 to july 3, 2025. Summer academy 2025 featured 12 teachers, six college interns, and 17 high school-age assistant teachers. In addition to running our standard four-week program for rising 7th - 9th grade students, partners launched a one-week pilot program for rising 6th grade students. In total, 86 scholars engaged in core courses in math and english, as well as steam classes including digital media, engineering and coding, modern dance, visual arts, and a course in social and emotional learning that included topics such as identity, wellness, financial literacy and decision-making. Classes are academically rigorous and designed to spark scholars' curiosity and cultivate their love of learning. Scholars also participated in elective club activities, outdoor sports, and field trips to explore the bay area. Summer academy is a safe, nurturing academic space where scholars use their unique voices to tell their stories, build up their confidence and feel empowered to make their dreams come true.

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 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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 70
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 81
  • Sustainability: 59
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79%; rating input score 79
  • Program expense ratio: 65.6%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.24 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 71
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 7.1%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 9.63; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 78.3%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.1% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.3% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79% of revenue deployed · 65.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 8 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $329K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $890K · 13 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 23 of 23 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 55/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 1/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.