Ninth District Opportunity INC EIN 58-0974656

Ninth District Opportunity INC

EIN  58-0974656 Public foundation / grantmaker Gainesville, GA Founded 1967
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 7/9/26 · see original filing: IRS
Is this your organization?
Claim this profile to manage it and share your story.
Claim
Provided by the organization

This section is blank until Ninth District Opportunity INC claims this page.

Know this organization? Claim it to add your story

Size
$10–100M
What they do
Manages government and foundation grants across 25 northeast Georgia counties.
Leadership
Karen Laws · Executive Director · $206K
Money in and out
$47.4M revenue, $48.2M expenses
Bottom line
96% program efficiency

Manages government and foundation grants across 25 northeast Georgia counties. For fiscal year 2025 it reported $47.4M in revenue, $48.2M in expenses, and $11.1M in net assets.Pt I

Grants paid & assets · FY2025
Total revenue
$47.4M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$48.2M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$11.1M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$763K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.96 Management & general $0.04
Program efficiency
96%
of spending reaches programs0% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
0.5mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate0% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
-2%
revenue over expenses, this year▼ -26% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2025 · Form 990
Revenue
$47.4M
FY2025▲ +2%
Expenses
$48.2M
FY2025▲ +2%
Total assets
$18.0M
FY2025▼ -5%
Total liabilities
$6.9M
FY2025▼ -3%
Total revenue
$47.4M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$48.2M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$11.1M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$763K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$18.0M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B96%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 312
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 412
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $44.7M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Head Start Programs

Adminstration of pre-school program to over 2,100 children in N.E. Georgia. Inkind contributions totaled $ 6,970,474

$29.7Mprogram expense
02

Community Service Programs

Provided assistance to elderly and low income eligible participants in N.E. Georgia. Inkind contributions totaled $317,500.

$9.3Mprogram expense
03

Georgia Pre-Kindergarten Program

Provided programs to meet development needs of eligible 4 year old children and to provide family support

$5.7Mprogram expense

Run this program? Claim this org to tell your story

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CNinth District Opportunity INC
EINHdr · item D58-0974656
Principal addressHdr · item CGainesville, GA
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.ndo.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1967
State of legal domicileHdr · item MGA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFFoundations & Grantmakers (T30)
Ruling yearIRS BMFDec 1967

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a12
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b12
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2024); the FY2025 filing did not itemize Part VII
Executive Director
$206,086Pt VII · Sec A
$198,207Pt VII · Sec A
Head Start Director
$166,737Pt VII · Sec A
Csbg Program Director
$156,230Pt VII · Sec A
$145,917Pt VII · Sec A
Assistant Csbg Program Director
$100,466Pt VII · Sec A
Chairman of Board
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Karen Laws’s $206K as Executive Director is at the 36th percentile of top reported officer pay among 658 $10–100M philanthropy & grantmaking 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 · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Karen Laws$206,086$209,389$194,098$155,250$133,466$124,324
Patricia Thomas$157,221$204,787$184,437$182,427
Linda Highsmith$198,207$198,640$199,616$196,001$178,636$166,192
Penny Bonds$166,737$157,901$152,506$124,345$105,886
Brenda Dalin$156,230$146,532$146,819$134,448$121,476$116,626
Cynthia Stephens$145,917
Kim Davidson$124,904$121,274$123,305$111,418$104,830
Linda Nichol$100,466

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 Ninth District Opportunity INC executive salaries →

Are you one of these people? Claim this org to confirm your role

Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants99%$47.1M
Investment income$136K
Other revenue$185K
Total revenueLn 12$47.4M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.96 Management & general $0.04
Program services96%$46.3M
Management & general4%$1.9M
Total functional expensesLn 25$48.2M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$2.2M
Total assetsLn 16$18.0M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$6.9M
Total net assetsLn 32$11.1M
Months of cash on handcomputed0.5

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2025 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $2.2M · Operating expenses/yr $48.2M
0.5 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $46.3M · Total expenses $48.2M
96%
Management & General
Management & general $1.9M · Total expenses $48.2M
4%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $48.2M
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $32.3M
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $47.1M · Total revenue $47.4M
99%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $47.4M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $47.4M
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $136K · Total revenue $47.4M
0%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $48.2M
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $47.4M · Prior year $46.5M
+2%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $44.2M · FY2024 $47.4M
+1%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $11.1M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $47.4M · Expenses $48.2M
-2%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $18.0M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $11.1M · Total assets $18.0M
61%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $18.0M
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Karen Laws · Reported title EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $206K · Total expenses $48.2M
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $28.4M · Total expenses $48.2M
59%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 96%
Overhead ratio 4%
Fundraising cost ratio 0%
Revenue growth 2%
Legal fee ratio 0%
Accounting fee ratio 0%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$5K
Grants paid · 44 grants · $75.0M · 2019–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$7,052,534
Unitemized GrantFY2024$1,197,951
Unitemized GrantFY2024$662,580
Unitemized GrantFY2024$189,558
Unitemized GrantFY2024$50,098
Unitemized GrantFY2024$29,434
Unitemized GrantFY2024$4,479
Unitemized GrantFY2023$7,862,767
Unitemized GrantFY2023$1,194,969
Unitemized GrantFY2023$602,637
Unitemized GrantFY2023$194,997
Unitemized GrantFY2023$169,606
Unitemized GrantFY2023$66,229
Unitemized GrantFY2023$51,418
Unitemized GrantFY2022$12,334,733
Unitemized GrantFY2022$2,078,051
Unitemized GrantFY2022$1,213,488
Unitemized GrantFY2022$893,530
See all 44 grants →

Compare

Search another nonprofit to view revenue, expenses, assets, key metrics, and leaders side by side

Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2025 (Latest)$47.4M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$46.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$58.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$53.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$44.3M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$44.2M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

Want to add your own materials alongside these filings? Claim this org

Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2025IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
Names, privacy, and removal requests More

The names, titles, and compensation shown on this page are reproduced from IRS Form 990 filings, which are public records.

Philanthropy.org does not alter the content of those filings. All information appears exactly as reported by the filing organization for the tax year shown.

We publish only information contained in the public IRS filing — and less than the filing contains. Our profile pages do not display street addresses, telephone numbers, personal email addresses, or other personal contact information, even where the filing includes them.

Many people share the same name. A name shown on this page reflects only what one organization reported in one IRS filing for one tax year. It should not be interpreted as identifying any other individual with the same or a similar name.

If you are no longer affiliated with the organization, your name will generally stop appearing in future IRS filings once the organization no longer reports you. Pages for tax years in which you were reported remain published because those filings remain part of the public record.

Philanthropy.org does not alter or remove IRS filing records. Removing a page from this website would not remove the underlying IRS filing, which remains publicly available from the IRS and other publishers of the same information.

If you believe the IRS filing itself is inaccurate, corrections must be made by the filing organization or the IRS directly.

If you ARE the filing organization, claim this org and add context

Made it to the end? Claim this organization

All figures are derived from public IRS Form 990 filings and are presented without evaluation of any organization. philanthropy.org does not rate, score, or rank organizations, including the peer-cohort and compensation comparisons above.