Thea Bowman Center

What it reported doing in 2024

Volunteer program: the center welcomed over 700 volunteers who provided help to all of the above programs and services. The year-round saturday hot lunch program alone is totally supported by over 350 volunteers from five partner churches. Businesses, companies, schools, churches, community residents, community social groups and sororities, support our small workforce and all programs. As a small organization, volunteers are a major asset to our mission and service to the community. Accomplishments: our mission statement (listening, learning and doing, adopted via the 2025 - 2027 strategic plan) is our guide to community engagement, connection and service delivery. Therefore, engagement and outreach during the hot meal and pantry time on saturdays, connects the center to the needs of the community's residents. This connection resulted in the implementation of the food choice program. This program empowers residents to select the items they want and need rather than receive a prepacked standard food bank grocery bag containing items that often aren't used. On saturdays, community residents are invited to participate in other tbc programs and services offered such as job fairs and the center's marketplace as well as receive valuable community, city and county resource information to help them in their daily life's journey. Development of program assessment and measurement tools to better account for our program and services was implemented january 2025. This included satisfaction surveys to be used by all programs for feedback from participants. The center's strategic plan will be updated and implemented for the period 2025 2027. Increased funding over the past four years has enabled the center to increase the staffing capacity from four part-time staff to seven full-time staff to meet the demand of expanded programming.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 83.1%; rating input score 83
• Fundraising efficiency: $8.6 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 33; 33rd 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: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Fail
  • 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: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -31.9%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.84; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 11.5% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 9.7% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 11.6% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings