Youth Represent Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
208034010
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
New York, NY, USA
Phone
6467598080
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Inmate Support

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,208,959
Expenses
$3,180,164
Assets
$2,926,921
Liabilities
$338,158

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MICHAEL POPE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (THRU 9/25))

Highest reported compensation

  • ASEANTE RENEE SCALES (DIR. COMMUNICATIONS & CULTURE): $203,851 total reported compensation
  • KATHERINE RUBIN (DIRECTOR, POLICY & STRATEG): $194,109 total reported compensation
  • SHOMARI WARD (LITIGATION DIRECTOR): $191,582 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Youth represent uses legal services, policy advocacy, peer education, and other tools to build power and opportunity for black, latine, and other youth of color who the criminal legal system and other systems of oppression harm the most. We envision a world where the racist legal system has been dismantled and biack, latine, indigenous, and other youth of color have the freedom and power to live their full lives.

What it reported doing in 2025

Strategic litigation: in partnership with law firms and organizations we pursue individual and class action lawsuits against employers who illegally discriminate against applicants with criminal histories. These lawsuits aim to procure financial settlements and systemic change in hiring practices, among other forms of relief, for system-affected clients. Additionally, our strategic litigation practice uses laws that our policy team has championed as a mechanism for social changelaws that aim to counter discriminatory practices that have historically oppressed under-resourced communities of color. To date, youth represent's strategic litigation has secured over $8 million in settlement funds, providing support for over 24,000 individuals wrongly discriminated against for having system involvement and giving many the opportunity for employment.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 70% 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 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: 62
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 29
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 66.2%; rating input score 66
  • Program expense ratio: 66.1%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.85 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 9 of 9 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: 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: 0.9%; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.92; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.12; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 34.6%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.4% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 66.2% of revenue deployed · 66.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $2.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $204K · 20 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $168K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2015 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.
  • 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 31/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 30/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 31/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 46/100.