Vernon Avenue Project Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 272995249
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2016–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Jamaica, NY, USA
- Phone
- 9295297300
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Youth Development Programs
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $258,275
- Expenses
- $476,900
- Assets
- $65,050
- Liabilities
- $3,990
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
9 people listed
People named in this filing
- SCOTT AIESE (DIRECTOR)
- DAN BLOOM (DIRECTOR)
- JOSEPH JANNETTY (DIRECTOR)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The vernon avenue project, inc. Was formed in 2010 to reconnect young men, 17-24, to positive life paths through entrenprenurship, education and leadership. The organization, also known as "reconnect" offers formative entry level work through the youth employment and development program. Work is provided at reconnect graphics. The youth partners were young men not working or in school who experienced the benefits of employment - most for the first time - making strides towards their personal journey to a more positive life.
What it reported doing in 2024
The reconnect cafe and apparel shop is a business that provides hands-on, direct on-the-job training for our youth partners. The reconnect cafe, first opened in bedford stuyvesant in 2013, was reopened after covid in 2021 in its new location in thomas berry place in jamaica, queens. In our new cafe, we also sell apparels and accessories created in the reconnect graphics shop, which is located on the same premises. Our cafe is a full- service coffee and beverage shop that offers a range of coffee brew options, all of which are made from our specialty-sourced reconnect gourmet coffee beans. Expenses = 93,715. Food service for the parish monastery provided by reconnect staff. Expenses = 53,314. General consulting and support services for thomas berry place retreat house. Expenses = 80,050.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 82% 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
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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 89
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 88
- Sustainability: 15
- Growth: 40
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 84%; rating input score 84
- Fundraising efficiency: $16.31 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd 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: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 6 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 86
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -84.6%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.14; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -0.2% per year; rating input score 0; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -5.5% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 84% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 8 of 9 board members independent · 6 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $401K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 9 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 9 filing years from 2016 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 8/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 30/100.