Upower

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
464220284
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone
5056093557
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Public Health Program (Includes General Health and Wellness Promotion Services)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$830,936
Expenses
$810,850
Assets
$1,105,141
Liabilities
$13,796

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Martha Moseley (President)
  • Lucy Burkland (Vice President)
  • Leighla Webb (Executive Director (Until 4/23/2025))
  • Rodney Robinson (Executive Director (From 8/5/2025))

Highest reported compensation

  • Leighla Webb (Executive Director (Until 4/23/2025)): $137,900 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Upower builds positive relationships through trauma-informed coaching using movement and play to empower and educate youth who are underserved.

What it reported doing in 2024

Upower provided trauma-informed fitness and mentorship classes to youth in underserved communities across King County, Washington, with a particular focus on supporting justice-involved youth at the King County Juvenile Detention Center and Echo Glen Children's Center. Since its founding in 2014, Upower has delivered 10,109 fitness classes and served 6,154 youth through juvenile detention centers, substance-use recovery facilities, affordable housing communities, alternative high schools, and community-based organizations. In 2024, Upower received the United States Department of Health and Human Services President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition Community Leadership Award in recognition of its work to expand access to physical activity and promote community well-being.

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.

The verdict

STRONG - 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: 70
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 46
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.7%; rating input score 75
  • Program expense ratio: 75.6%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.72 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.4%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.36; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 17%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.5% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.5% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 74.7% of revenue deployed · 75.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $613K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $138K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 30/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 53/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.