United Community Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
221761128
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Newark, NJ, USA
Phone
9736420181
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$10,184,946
Expenses
$11,272,625
Assets
$7,770,156
Liabilities
$5,889,852

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Craig Mainor (Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • Craig Mainor (Executive Director): $161,666 total reported compensation
  • Julia Ochoa (Director of Finance): $121,905 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Guided by service, compassion, and fairness, united community corporation's mission is to assist low-income, disadvantaged, and at-risk individuals and families, including seniors and youth, to become self-sufficient and self-supporting while enhancing their quality of life and standard of living.

What it reported doing in 2024

Part iii, line 4a - program service accomplishments child and family development the organization provides early childhood education, after-school enrichment, and family support services that help youth develop academic and social skills. Programs include tutoring, stem activities, summer camps, and family counseling. These services reduce learning gaps and promote school success. Senior services united community corporation offers nutritional meals, wellness programs, case management, and recreational activities for seniors. These programs combat isolation, promote healthy aging, and provide direct support to help older adults remain active members of the community. Employment support the organization provides job readiness training, resume development, interview preparation, and connects clients to employment opportunities. Programs include youthbuild and nj build, which train residents in construction and trade skills, helping participants achieve long-term economic stability. Affordable housing development the organization owns and manages housing units and implements weatherization programs to improve energy efficiency for low-income residents. Through federal and state grants, the agency replaces furnaces, hot water heaters, and other household equipment to improve living conditions. Additionally, ucc is involved in new construction projects that create long-term housing solutions for families in newark. Emergency assistance services the organization provides food pantries, clothing distribution, utility assistance, and emergency shelter services to individuals and families in crisis. These programs meet immediate needs while also connecting clients to longer-term supports.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 98% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 85
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 22
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.5%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 79.9%; rating input score 80
  • Fundraising efficiency: $142.16 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • 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: -10.7%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.69; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.76; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.5%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16.5% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16.4% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.1% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 88.5% of revenue deployed · 79.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $162K · 11 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $132K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 24/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 15/100.