Empower underserved arizona students to enroll in and graduate from college. Step currently works with over 300 low-income AZ high-school students yearly. A majority of Step students are the first generation in their family to seek a college degree. To date, 96 of steps college-prep alumni are in college or have attained a college degree.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
88¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$99K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2023 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
5 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $61K a year · 8% of revenue · last 6 filings
Fine: a surplus in 5 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
88%
of spending
Looks good: 88% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$99K
to officers and key staff · 13% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 13% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
4 mo
of spending, in cash
Plus $793K in investments, Pt X · Ln 11–13
Looks good: 3.8 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
8
named funders · $434K
Looks good: 8 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$10K
1.0% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 1% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
13
of 13 voting members
Looks good: 13 of 13 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$858K
+16% vs prior year
Spent
$780K
To programs
88%
Net assets
$1.0M
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$858K
FY2023▲ +16%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$547K
FY2021$562K
FY2022$736K
FY2023$858K
FY2024$860K
FY2025$857K
Expenses
$780K
FY2023▲ +13%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$358K
FY2021$480K
FY2022$693K
FY2023$780K
FY2024$855K
FY2025$889K
Net assets
$1.0M
FY2023▲ +12%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$876K
FY2021$960K
FY2022$929K
FY2023$1.0M
FY2024$1.1M
FY2025$1.2M

From the FY2023 Form 990 (year ending August 2023) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Feb 2003.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

88 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 88% · $683K Management & general 4% · $31K Fundraising 9% · $67K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

14 people listed on the 990; $99K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2022); the FY2023 filing did not itemize Part VII
Founder, President, and CEO
$99,000Pt VII · Sec A
Board Chair
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Tracy Baynes’s $111K as Founder, President, and CEO is at the 87th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1612 $100K–1M education nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Tracy Baynes$110,687$106,231$99,000$88,625$85,158$86,238
Les Smith—————$70,128

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

See Step Student Expedition Program INC executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Empowers low-income Arizona students with skills for college degrees and breaking poverty cycles.

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Provided by the organization

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1 program · $683K · in their own filed words · FY2022
01

College-prep program step provided its comprehensive college-prep program to over 200 low-income arizona high-school students last year. Steps graduating class of 2023 are attending the three arizona state universities as well as top-ranked schools nationwide including harvard, yale, stanford, brown, duke, johns hopkins, northwestern…

$683Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
See all 8 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2023 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$858K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$848K
Investment incomeLn 3$9K
Money outPt IX
$780K
Ln 25
Programscol B$683K
Managementcol C$31K
Fundraisingcol D$67K
Owns and owesPt X
$1.0M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$249K
Total assetsLn 16$1.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10K
PeoplePt VI, VII
14
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a13
IndependentVI 1b13
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$848K
Noncash giftsLn 1g$5K
Investment incomeLn 3$9K
Gains on assetsLn 7−$135
Total revenueLn 12$858K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$24K
SavingsLn 2$225K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$249K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$793K
Total assetsLn 16$1.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10K
Net assetsLn 32$1.0M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 59
VolunteersI 692
Fiscal year endsHeaderAugust
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY23End FY23
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$471K$249K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$443K$793K
Total assetsLn 16$939K$1.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10K$10K
Net assetsLn 32$929K$1.0M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$0
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$0
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$0
Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4$0
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$110K$99K$11K
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$238K$193K$45K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$0
Other employee benefitsLn 9$17K$17K
Payroll taxesLn 10$26K$21K$780$3K
Management feesLn 11a$0
Legal feesLn 11b$0
Accounting feesLn 11c$10K$10K
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$125$125
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$6K$4K$2K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$7K$3K$3K
Office expensesLn 13$8K$5K$2K$654
Information technologyLn 14$41K$27K$14K
RoyaltiesLn 15$0
OccupancyLn 16$0
TravelLn 17$32K$32K$148
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$0
InterestLn 20$0
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$15K$15K
InsuranceLn 23$5K$5K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$266K$266K
All other expensesLn 24e$0
Total functional expensesLn 25$780K$683K$31K$67K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $857K$889K−$33K$1.2M 990 PDF
FY2024 $860K$855K$5K$1.1M 990 PDF
FY2023 Viewing $858K$780K$77K$1.0M 990 PDF
FY2022 $736K$693K$43K$929K 990 PDF
FY2021 $562K$480K$82K$960K 990 PDF
FY2020 $547K$358K$189K$876K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2023 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $857,571 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $728,391$848,171
I-9 Program service revenue$0
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $7,986$9,400
I-11 Other revenue$0
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $736,377$857,571
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paid$0
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $364,506$390,835
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $328,773$389,371
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $693,279$780,206
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year $43,098$77,365
Part VI · Governance 13 of 13 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body13
VI-1b Independent voting members13
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $857,571 across 6 lines filed
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$848,171
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$5,186
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$848,171
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $9,535$9,535
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsExcluded from tax −$135−$135
VIII-12 Total revenueExcluded from tax $9,400$857,571
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $780,206 across 30 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizations$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individuals$0
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipients$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for members$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $98,977 · Management $10,998$109,975
IX-6 Pay of disqualified persons$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $193,459 · Fundraising $45,000$238,459
IX-8 Pension plan contributions$0
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $16,788$16,788
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $21,472 · Management $780 · Fundraising $3,361$25,613
IX-11a Management fees$0
IX-11b Legal fees$0
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $9,537$9,537
IX-11d Lobbying fees$0
IX-11f Investment management feesManagement $125$125
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $3,650 · Management $2,170$5,820
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $3,316 · Fundraising $3,316$6,632
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $5,151 · Management $2,001 · Fundraising $654$7,806
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $26,788 · Fundraising $14,101$40,889
IX-15 Royalties$0
IX-16 Occupancy$0
IX-17 TravelPrograms $32,334 · Fundraising $148$32,482
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officials$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetings$0
IX-20 Interest$0
IX-21 Payments to affiliates$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $15,240$15,240
IX-23 InsuranceManagement $5,172$5,172
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $265,668$265,668
IX-24e All other expenses$0
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $682,843 · Management $30,783 · Fundraising $66,580$780,206
Part X · Balance sheet $1,051,853 assets, 10 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $63,085$24,183
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $407,856$224,768
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $442,842$792,742
X-14 Intangible assetsStart of year $25,400$10,160
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $939,183$1,051,853
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $10,407$10,100
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $10,407$10,100
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $928,776$1,041,753
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $928,776$1,041,753
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $939,183$1,051,853
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $1,041,753 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$857,571
XI-2 Total expenses$780,206
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$77,365
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$928,776
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$35,612
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$1,041,753

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2023 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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