Down East Partnership for Children
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
Launch every child as a healthy, lifelong learner by the end of the third grade. This is accomplished through working across the four building blocks of early education. 1) Health and development are on track beginning before birth 2) Families are engaged and supported by coordinated communities 3) Early care and education environments are high quality and 4) Ready Schools - Teaching and learning environments for K-3 students are effective inside and outside, 365 days a year.
- Income
- $7.1 million
- Spending
- $7.0 million
- Spent on programs
- 90%
- Reserves
- 0.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 74%
- Employees
- 57
- Volunteers
- 470
- Highest pay
- $137,492, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 66 out of 100. Higher than 49% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
4 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 0.6 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 15% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 2% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 1% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1590% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 1 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 74% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2522 of 22 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
7 of 7Has a 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 June 30, 2025, 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 (4)
- $2.2 million spent. Smart Start supports the following primary programs of DEPC: Child Care Resource & Referral including provider, family, and subsidy services (POC & Admin); NC Pre-K Quality; Family Resource Center, Community Collaboratives; Research & Development; Dolly Parton Imagination Library and Reach Out and Read. In addition, DEPC funds and provides technical assistance, monitoring, and support to 3 activities in 3 partnering agencies (WAGES, Nash County Public Schools Kindergarten Transition, Edgecombe County Public Schools Kindergarten Transition). All together, these programs provided a variety of services, including parent education/support, referrals to high quality child care, general parenting resources, child development information, and access to subsidized child care. Through Consumer Education services, 697 children ages birth to five received consumer education, 79 caregivers/parents received information and assistance regarding finding quality child care through referrals, and 407 parents/guardians received consumer education about child care through consultations. A total of 20 out of 20 families responding to a referral survey indicated selecting 3-star or higher child care, and 42 out of 43 families reported using quality indicators in their child care search. Through the Family Resource Center, 420 parents/guardians accessed Family First for general parenting, child development information, and referrals. A total of 420 parents received at least one service referral, and 130 out of 151 parents referred reported using at least one referred service. A total of 62 out of 68 families reported that the information provided increased their knowledge of services available based on their needs. Kaleidoscope Play & Learn Groups served 64 children and 63 caregivers, and 35 children received an ASQ-3 and/or ASQ-SE2 screening completed by their parent/caregiver. Through evidence-based family programming, 7 parents/caregivers completed the Incredible Years Basic Preschool Series, impacting 33 children. Circle of Parents served 38 parents/caregivers and 54 children, with 21 parents/caregivers completing at least one Circle of Parents series within the year. Triple P Level 4 Group Series served 33 parents/caregivers and impacted 69 children. Dual Subsidy Administration provided subsidized child care scholarships for 136 children. Scholarship providers participating in professional development included 20 programs related to physical activity, nutrition education, and/or social/emotional health and 31 programs participating in professional development on other areas. All scholarship providers serving scholarship children had a site visit completed, and 100% of parents whose child scored below age level on the developmental screening were referred to Family Services for follow-up. The average star rating for subsidized children in the most recent year with data available was 4.75, and 98% of subsidized children were in 4- and 5-star care. Community outreach and engagement efforts included 327 total volunteers providing 1,208.29 total volunteer hours, 10,934 visits to Discovery Park, and 1,340 sign-in visitors to the Family Resource Center. Community Outreach activities tracked 46,573 website views, 722,977 social media interactions, 32 newsletters produced, 8,423 contacts on the newsletter distribution list, 152 outreach presentations, and 58 outreach events. Research and Development activities tracked 136 total donors, including 31 new donors and 21 recurring donors, and raised $594,550 in FY25.
- $3.2 million spent. The North Carolina Pre-Kindergarten Program is a 4-year-old preschool program for at-risk children, based on income or other criteria, to attend high quality programs in public preschool classrooms, Head Start facilities, or private child care facilities meeting the quality criteria. In FY25, 439 children were funded through NC Pre-K. A total of 5 NC Pre-K Advisory meetings were held. Support services were provided to 9 child care staff and 5 child care facilities through Other ECE Supports, and 5 child care staff and 2 child care facilities received technical assistance with ECERS-R. In addition, 8 child care staff from licensed facilities in counties listed in Fabrik participated in DCDEE-approved training. Program outcomes indicated that 84% of classroom teachers who participated in technical assistance services demonstrated growth or improvement on their initial areas of weakness following completion of a technical assistance plan. A total of 9 out of 9 NC Pre-K sites completed the practices and procedures inventory at the beginning of the year, 100% of NC Pre-K providers demonstrated that they implemented transition strategies in conjunction with parents and elementary schools, and 100% demonstrated implementation of family engagement activities during annual site visits.
- $298,926 spent. Regional Child Care Resource and Referral Services included consumer education and referral services, professional development, technical assistance, mentoring, and data collection. In FY25, 78 child care staff received Other ECE Support and 50 child care facilities received Other ECE Support. Start-up technical assistance was provided to 4 child care facilities. ECERS-R technical assistance was provided to 5 child care staff and 2 child care facilities. Mentoring services included 3 child care staff in child care centers and 1 child care facility with at least one staff person participating. DCDEE-approved training reached 267 child care staff in licensed facilities, representing 58 licensed child care facilities. In addition, 16 child care centers received one-time grants, awards, or bonuses designed to support quality. Program outcomes indicated that 62% of early childhood educators receiving TA on Level 1 and Level 2 completed at least one strategy on their action plan, and 62% increased their use of developmentally appropriate practices and implementation of best practices after completion of TA. The average ECERS-R score increased from 5.44 pre to 6.03 post among classrooms with results.
- $553,075 spent. Other program services included Family Nutrition Education, Family Supports and Education, Flex Funds, WAGE$, Transition activities, Community Collaboratives, and Ready Communities/Ready Schools efforts
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since July 1994.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 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 21, 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.