TranscenDANCE Youth Arts Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
204641700
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2012
Location
San Diego, CA, USA
Phone
6193105330
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Education N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,432,350
Expenses
$1,398,286
Assets
$1,147,175
Liabilities
$332,843

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Maren Dougherty (President)
  • Arlene Yang (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Catherine Corral (Executive Dir.): $119,566 total reported compensation
  • Stephanie Walsh (Managing Dir.): $85,692 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We provide access to dance & performance, & holistic wraparound services, for young people from marginalized communities. We support youth as they transcend barriers, recognize their own potential & power, and create positive change.

What it reported doing in 2025

2025 CONNECT programs: -Held on-site dance & visual art classes weekly throughout the school year for 36 students, ages 4-8 years. -Partnered with 15 school residency sites in Lemon Grove and San Diego, serving 1,179 students across school-year residency programming. -Offered summer residency programming for 125 students in partnership with the Lemon Grove School District, and an additional 34 students through summer residency work in partnership with Kupanda Kids (refugee serving organization). -Reached 3,360 audience members through outreach performances held at community partner sites, festivals, events, and conferences. CREATE HIGHLIGHTS -CREATE Performance Groups of 65 students total, in 3 age-based cohorts, held 2 performances of Rooted and Dreaming at the Hoover High School Performing Arts Center for 920 total audience members. -350+ program hours of dance, poetry, visual arts, and performing arts activities that also included a social emotional learning curriculum. -Holistic wraparound support including meal service, mental health and wellness services, leadership development opportunities, and college readiness support for high school seniors. -29 students attended a Level Up SD summer camp experience, with two weeks of 9-hour days of dance, poetry, and visual arts experiences. CONTRIBUTE HIGHLIGHTS -10 CONTRIBUTE college-age alumni received ongoing mentor ship and mental health and wellness support. -11 paid positions for teens and alumni as performers, choreographers, teaching artists, and program staff assistants. -11 college scholarships, totaling $26,400.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 64% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72%; rating input score 72
  • Program expense ratio: 73.6%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.36 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th 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; 64th 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.4%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.82; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.29; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.7%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.1% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 15.5% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.9% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72% of revenue deployed · 73.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $120K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 30 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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 36/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 38/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 37/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.