Whole Child International
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
Points to look into
- It owes more than it owns.
These come from the organization's own tax return. There may be a good explanation; ask the charity.
What it says it does
Whole Child International promotes positive developmental outcomes for children through child protection systems strengthening and improving the quality of care for children in low- and middle-income countries.
- Income
- $1.1 million
- Spending
- $1.4 million
- Spent on programs
- 83%
- Reserves
- -4.5 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 91%
- Employees
- 3
- Volunteers
- 8
- Highest pay
- $100,000, ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 25 out of 100. Higher than 2% of charities in its peer group (youth development, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
0 of 35Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.
Debt
0 of 20It owes 293% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 25% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 2% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1583% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 1 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 55% of charities in its peer group (youth development, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 258 of 8 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
0 of 7Reports no written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $1.2 million spent. Whole Child International believes that a nurturing, consistent relationship between children and caregivers is essential to the development of the cognitive, emotional, social, and motor skills of the child. Improving the quality of care through a cost-effective, context-appropriate approach promotes positive interactions among children and strengthens the bonds between children, parents, and other caregivers as they learn to collaborate, share, and trust one another. By providing safe, supportive care for children from low-income families, we're helping parents stay in the workforce without worrying about childcare. The income from expanded employment, coupled with targeted social services, offers families a better future right at home by reducing household vulnerability to extreme stressors such as increased poverty, interpersonal violence, criminal or extremist involvement, and feeling pressured to migrate or re-migrate.In order to achieve our goals we co-create and work with country governments, policy makers, educators, protection and ECCD supervisors, and caregivers to effectively plan and implement child protection and early childhood development programs. We have identified a number of steps that we follow with our partners:1. Country AssessmentWhole Child International has created a standard tool that can be utilized by governments to conduct an initial assessment of their readiness to go through a care reform process on a national or sub-national level. This tool identifies the necessary components of the care sector that are rooted in best practice where children are supported in community and family-based care. Governments are able to use this tool to prioritize next steps in the care reform process and ensure that a holistic, robust child protection system is developed.2. QCUALS Pre-testWhole Child International developed its flagship measurement tool, the Whole Child International Quality Childcare Universal Assessment for Limited-Resource Settings (WCI-QCUALS) with the goal of creating a free-to-use, cross-cutting monitoring and evaluation tool that assesses overall quality of childcare across the full spectrum of care settings.It was originally designed to measure all factors in a care center that impacts children's well-being, health, and development (physical, cognitive, linguistic, and social-emotional). As part of its programming model, Whole Child now uses this tool to establish a baseline for quality of care when it begins its work.3. University CourseWhole Child International addresses the acute human and technical resource shortage of qualified government supervisors, social workers, policymakers, and other key personnel by developing, implementing, and institutionalizing a series of accredited university courses. These courses develop highly trained professionals that can create, implement, and support high-quality, relationship-based childcare policies and practices that improve children's development and well-being.Whole Child offers two types of courses:1. The policymaker course involves increasing understanding of judges, ministers, and lawyers on child protection issues from a rights-based, relationship-centered standpoint. This is so that they can make the best decisions regarding the placement and follow-up of children and youth in the child protection system. 2. The child protection and early-childhood for technical staff course is designed to facilitate increased awareness and adoption of best practices in childcare. 4. MentoringWhole Child understands that training to increase knowledge is only the first step. In order to work towards sustainable change Whole Child works to ensure that those who have participated in the various training programs internalize and apply what they have learned.Whole Child provides direct personalized mentoring to technical supervisors within the government. The mentoring lasts for approximately one-and-a-half to two years after the training. Each mentee identifies his/her areas for growth and learning goals based on what s/he has learned from the university course, WCI-QCUALS application, and other experience. Through this mentoring process, mentoring to directors and caregivers is modeled to the technical supervisors by Whole Child staff. The mentee, who is a Whole Child trained, government employee, becomes a mentor to provide immediate, positive, and timely feedback to center directors and caregivers.5. Caregiver TrainingFor caregivers and other residential and childcare center staff who work day-to-day with children, we provide training and mentoring in the application of optimal childcare practices.Designed for staff with a range of educational backgrounds and levels of literacy, our caregiver training takes place once a month for nine months and is complemented by hands-on technical training and sustained mentoring for all caregivers who are directly responsible for the care of children.The caregiver training is held one day (8 hours) per month, for nine months. The caregiver training course is supported by four training volumes:A. Caregiver Training: Best Practices in Early Childhood Group Care in Limited-Resource SettingsB. Guide for Direct Care Staff: Better Practices for Group ChildcareC. Guide for Mini-Trainings for Caregivers: Best Practices in Childcare in Limited-Resource SettingsD. A Quick Guide to Evidence-Based Best Practices in Early-Childhood Group Care6. Improving the Physical Space of Childcare Centers As part of the training to caregivers, technical staff, and policymakers, Whole Child works with childcare center staff to restructure the physical space to ensure it supports relationship-centered care. Whole Child provides materials such as developmentally appropriate furniture and other supportive items to help create an environment conducive to responsive respectful care that promotes skills development. This material improvement is not a remodeling of the center, but rather an opportunity to educate
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since July 2006.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.