University District Service League

What it reported doing in 2024

The food bank's programming is primarily focused on improved food access for our neighbors. We orient our services to identify and address barriers experienced in our community. Since the end of enhanced covid benefits, the food bank has seen a significant increase in participation across all its programs. Services are 80% busier than just two years ago. Food purchasing has more than doubled in that same time period. The food bank maintains longer distribution hours and expanded staffing levels to reduce some of these operational pressures but at a higher monthly operating cost. The primary program, a food pantry in seattle's university district neighborhood, provides a grocery store shopping experience for more than 1,500 weekly customer families. Customers shop through the pantry to select the produce, dairy, meat, and other pantry staples they need to prepare their own healthy, culturally familiar meals. Hygiene items and baby supplies supplement customer visits. Ready to eat items are available for kitchen-less customers when they visit. Two weekly satellite pantries continue to support their specific host communities, important since these communities have more limited access to healthy food. The pantry at magnuson park serves 175 households per week. At north seattle college, the pantry supports about 300 households per week. In 2025 the focus is on expanding healthy, culturally familiar food choices at each of these locations. When in-person access to pantries is a challenge, the food bank offers home delivery of groceries using a range of collaborations. More than 550 households receive grocery deliveries each week; there is a sizable waiting list for this service too. Volunteers pack customized grocery bags for each home delivery customer based on their expressed needs and preferences. Food bank volunteers deliver the majority of the groceries. An on-going partnership with pedaling relief project (a program of cascade bicycle club) brings added delivery capacity on wednesdays and saturdays. Additional deliveries on saturdays are provided through a collaboration with united way and amazon. In 2026, the food bank will coordinate deliveries with amazon directly. This partnership will exist at least through 2028. Packs for kids, the weekly program to bring backpacks of food to students in nearby public schools, has reached record levels in participation. This service, through 16 nearby schools, reaches more than 975 students each week. At two schools, there are also twice a month free farmer's markets so that families can collect fresh, culturally familiar fruits and vegetables and other pantry basics when they are at school picking up their kids. These markets have been extremely well received so the food bank will look to expand this service at other partner schools in 2026 if the parent and school community is interested. This multi-faceted response ensures that students continue to have access to healthy and easy to prepare meals and snacks throughout the weekend and return to school ready to learn on monday morning. Since april 2024 the apple-a-day cafe, operated from a corner of the university district pantry, has provided heathy ready-to-eat meals, salads, and soups to community members in need of a meal instead of just groceries. About 20% of our weekly customers are unsheltered, so these meals provide important nutrition three days a week when the cafe is open. Cafe meals are free, are cooked mostly from scratch, and let the food bank repurpose produce that might not be market quality but is still healthy to eat and other donations better meant for a restaurant. The cafe serves about 250 meals per day when open. A collaboration with mojito cafe helps supply food for one day of cafe meals each week. The food bank continues to operate rooftop roots, its rooftop farm. Through a mix of staff and volunteers, the food bank grows produce year-round in 2,000 square feet of raised bed gardens. The produce grown through ro

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 93.1%; rating input score 93
• Fundraising efficiency: $20.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • 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: -8%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.79; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 3.5%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 8.5% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 6.5% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 12.7% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings