Valley Center for the Blind

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
942255626
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Fresno, CA, USA
Phone
5592224447
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Eye Diseases, Blindness and Vision Impairments

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,913,942
Expenses
$2,777,227
Assets
$2,512,545
Liabilities
$783,485

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Ryan Wullschleger (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • SHELLENA HEBER (Executive Dir.): $123,743 total reported compensation
  • Dr Lauren Fernandez (Secretary): $4,900 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To support, train, and employ people who are blind or have low vision and increase their opportunities to lead an independent and fulfilling life.

What it reported doing in 2024

Valley Center for the Blind is a nationally recognized organization that uplifts individuals who are blind or low vision. We have helped to improve the independence skills of over 791 individuals over 15,652 hours within the last year. We have taught people skills to make them job ready and have one of the top placement rates for community-based employment for people who are blind and low vision in the state of California. We also developed a direct partnership with Fresno County to create sustainable pathways to accessible employment.

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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78.6%; rating input score 79
  • Program expense ratio: 82.3%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $619.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 96; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th 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: 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: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 4.7%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.9; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.6%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.5% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 18% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 22.2% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 78.6% of revenue deployed · 82.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $124K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 31 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 50/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 34/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 33/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.