Foundation of Yakima Valley Community College
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The Foundation is organized exclusively for charitable and educational purposes. Our main focus is awarding scholarships to students, yearly awards for faculty/staff and assisting in the promotion and support of Yakima Valley College educational programs.
- Income
- $1.7 million
- Spending
- $740,293
- Spent on programs
- 97%
- Reserves
- -4.7 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- investment income, 72%
- Employees
- 1
- Volunteers
- 15
- Highest pay
- $46,780, executive dir.
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: 65 out of 100. Higher than 47% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
0 of 35Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 5% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 56% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 107% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1597% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 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: 95 out of 100. Higher than 69% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2518 of 18 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
0 of 5Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.
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 (1)
- $715,005 spent. Awarding scholarships to students is our main focus and our largest expenditure. We have awarded over $10 million in scholarships to approximately 9000 students in the 48 years we have been in existence. The Foundation also raised matching funds for the SBCTC Exceptional Faculty Program in 1998. $350,000 was matched by the State of WA to make awards available yearly to faculty working at Yakima Valley College (YVC). 98% of the total expenses were spent on scholarships and awards. The revenue we generate yearly comes from donors who want to establish scholarships with us and the investment income generated by those donations. We require a $25,000 donation to set up a perpetual scholarship whereby we only award the income from the prior year and keep initial donation intact. We charge a 0.5%-1.5% administrative fee yearly to pay for administrative costs in our office. The fees charged are based on prior year's performance and income generated. We also accept donations where the donor wants the whole donation to be awarded and is charged a 3% one-time fee on the initial donation with no investment income generated. The Foundation teamed up with the college and created an emergency fund for studentsThe Student Success Fund. The funds cover unexpected costs that come up that would prevent a student from attending their classes such as rent, utilities, car repairs, groceries, etc. Our Foundation has been given millions of dollars by incredible people who want to further the educations of students who wouldn't be able to attend college if not for the scholarship. A list of our scholarships with their criteria is available at yvcc.edu/scholarships.
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 June 1978.
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.