Unleashing Potential

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
430654857
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Saint Louis, MO, USA
Phone
3143831733
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Neighborhood Centers

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,211,541
Expenses
$4,624,524
Assets
$1,803,218
Liabilities
$341,542

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

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DARLENE SOWELL (PRESIDENT AND CEO)
  • VERLETTA COLE (VICE PRESIDENT, PHILANTHROPY)

Highest reported compensation

  • DARLENE SOWELL (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $191,969 total reported compensation
  • VERLETTA COLE (VICE PRESIDENT, PHILANTHROPY): $152,632 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of unleashing potential is to close the opportunity gap for children and youth by building on their strengths. We create educational and empowering experiences through early childhood education, after school programs, youth (continued on schedule o)development, and enrichment camps.

What it reported doing in 2024

School age services: up school age services - with a strong commitment to personal growth and academic success, up school age services provides before-school and after-school programs for elementary/middle-aged students in under resourced communities in the greater st. Louis area. The program provides homework assistance, cultural awareness, and s.t.e.a.m. Activities (science, technology, engineering, art expression, and math), including geospatial intelligence concepts. Conscious discipline, a research-based behavior modification curriculum, is used to develop social emotional life skills for children. Continued on schedule o.2024 outcomes: - 9 sites in the city and county- 759 children served- 95% of children gained or maintained independent living /essential life skills -88% of children identified, managed, and appropriately expressed emotions and behaviors. Summer enrichment camps - up enrichment camps offer fun and enriching activities designed to provide an experiential approach to joyful summer learning for youth k-8 grades. Strategically located at partner sites in st. Louis city and county, the 8-week camps give children ages 5 to 15 years old opportunities for day camp filled with camp activities include swimming lessons, fitness, studio and performing arts, s.t.e.a.m activities, geospatial intelligence concepts, field trips and sports, all within the context of promoting healthy social/emotional growth. 2024 outcomes: - 4 sites - 194 children served- 100% of children gained or maintained independent living /essential life skills- 88% of children identified, managed, and appropriately expressed emotions and behaviors.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 85.5%; rating input score 85
  • Program expense ratio: 77.3%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 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: -9.8%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.39; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.5%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.9% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1.7% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 85.5% of revenue deployed · 77.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $3.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $192K · 15 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.