Youth Encouragement Services (YES)
Legal name: Youth Encouragement Services Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 620570681
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Jun 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Nashville, TN, United States
- Phone
- (615) 315-5333
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Youth Centers, Clubs
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $932,532
- Expenses
- $1,065,828
- Assets
- $3,561,478
- Liabilities
- $94,303
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
20 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VIVA PRICE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
- MARK WILLOUGHBY (PAST PRESIDENT)
- GREG ALLEN (PRESIDENT)
- MARK FULFORD (VICE PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- VIVA PRICE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $87,855 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Enrich the lives of Nashville’s youth by providing opportunities that encourage them to reach their full potential spiritually, academically, socially, and physically through daily programming in a Christ-centered community. YES has been serving children in South Nashville since 1956. Our mission has always been to serve our community and help kids reach their full potential. YES was originally known as “The Hobby Shop” due to the many workshops offered for youth to learn new skills and peak new interests. Davidson County Enrollment Diversity 37.2%. VOLUNTEER Sponsor 70th Birthday Brunch Call Us (615) 315-5333 Want to participate as a volunteer? According to USNEWS, in High School, college readiness is at 27.4%. By providing opportunities that aren’t normally seen in our community, we are able to open many doors for our scholars. We offer support through our reading program, READY...
What it reported doing in 2024
Community centers provide a setting for students to develop individually, have an established community to which they belong, and experience opportunities that will steer their lifes trajectory. The organization employs targeted interventions that help close the achievement gap, improve student skills, and promote a successful transition to adulthood. Centers are designed to provide a safe place for children to grow spiritually, academically, physically, and socially. Programs include tutoring and homework assistance, literacy and financial literacy initiatives, mentoring, organized recreational sports, life skills courses, and cultural experience to help support school aged youth. Students who attend effective after-school programs benefit from: improved academic achievement, enhanced social and emotional development, healthy lifestyles, and prevention of high-risk 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.
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: 80
- Transparency & Controls: 82
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 41
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 87.7%; rating input score 88
- Program expense ratio: 76.6%; rating input score 77
- Fundraising efficiency: $15.65 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 86.7%; rating input score 87; 3rd 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: 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: -14.3%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.34; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 8.2%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 7.3% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7.5% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 14.5% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 87.7% of revenue deployed · 76.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $817K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $88K · 20 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 29 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule D expense reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule D revenue reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 43/100.