Valentino Achak Deng Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 205961736
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- San Francisco, CA, USA
- Phone
- 4155508840
- Rating
- 66
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- International Relief
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $368,263
- Expenses
- $403,021
- Assets
- $853,366
- Liabilities
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
11 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VALENTINO ACHAK DENG (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CO-FOUNDER)
- ANN GOLDBLATT (PRESIDENT)
- TIFFANIE DEBARTOLO (VICE PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- VALENTINO ACHAK DENG (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CO-FOUNDER): $93,750 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 valentino achak deng foundation (vad) is a us-based non-profit organization working to increase access to education in post-conflict south sudan by constructing and operating schools, libraries, teacher-training institutes, and community (continued on schedule o) centers. Beyond traditional classroom education, the foundation offers a variety of extracurricular activities designed to help students develop leadership skills and engage in community service including: student government, drama and debate clubs, competitive sports programs, and social action groups.
What it reported doing in 2024
In 2024, the vad foundation sponsored a total of 381 girls enrolled in its elementary and high school programs. Known as vadf girl scholars, the group includes 189 elementary students and 192 high school students who are studying in a secure, supportive learning environment at cornerstones vision academy in aweil, northern bahr el ghazal state. In addition, the foundation sponsored 15 learners pursuing vocational training at the affiliated don bosco center in wau, western bahr el ghazal. These students are training in essential fields such as carpentry, masonry, mechanics, electrical work, and ict. All vocational learners are expected to graduate in december 2025, after which some will be engaged by the foundation to support its education and community livelihood programs.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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
SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 71
- Transparency & Controls: 55
- Accountability: 84
- Sustainability: 40
- Growth: 40
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 78.7%; rating input score 79
- Program expense ratio: 71.8%; rating input score 72
- Fundraising efficiency: $6.99 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 25th 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: -9.4%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.12; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 23.3%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 0.1% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -3.2% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -1.8% per year; rating input score 0; 18th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 78.7% of revenue deployed · 71.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 10 of 11 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $289K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $94K · 11 people listed
- Consistency: 23 of 23 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 30/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 23/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.