The ROC Charlotte Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 823547898
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2020–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Charlotte, NC, USA
- Phone
- 7046510137
- Rating
- 85
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Vocational, Technical Schools
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $1,690,222
- Expenses
- $1,324,917
- Assets
- $3,433,868
- Liabilities
- $774,950
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
13 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- Margaret Thornton (Associate Dir.): $105,000 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To provide technical construction skills and job readiness training, mentorships, paid apprenticeships and permanent job placement for students attending high schools in under-served areas of Mecklenburg County. The ROC construction trade school is now fully integrated into 6 Charlotte-Mecklenburg high schools (West Meck, Harding, West Charlotte, Garinger, Chambers and Phillip O. Berry).
What it reported doing in 2024
The ROC served 145 enrolled CMS students this past FYE 6/30/25 with technical and Job readiness skills training, apprenticeships and permanent job placements. During the course of FYE 2025, ROC students completed approximately 683 College Classes and / or Industry Certifications. The ROC had 82 graduating seniors with a high school graduation rate of 98.7%. In addition, the ROC placed 57 students in the construction field this 2025 summer as pre-apprentices (ages 16-17) or apprentices (age 18). We conducted detailed in-person surveys with each Industry Partner as to their satisfaction with our summer ROC students. Positive to very positive feedback has consistently been in the 93% approval range over the past 3 years. So far this summer, that high approval rate is standing firm. Finally, approximately 2/3 of ROC graduates are successfully employed in the construction industry or completing their degrees at CPCC, UNCC, NC A&T, East Carolina, etc.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 97% 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.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and liabilities are high compared with assets.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 76
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 66
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 68.7%; rating input score 69
- Program expense ratio: 87%; rating input score 87
- Fundraising efficiency: $49.52 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 78; 78th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 21.6%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.59; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 7.9%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 21.1% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 24.1% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 36.4% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 68.7% of revenue deployed · 87% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $105K · 13 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
- 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: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 29/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 44/100.