CAMBRIDGE, MA—AUGUST 24, 2015—Cradles to Crayons’ today announced that its sound fiscal management practices and commitment to accountability and transparency have earned it a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator for the 7th consecutive year. Only 2% of the more than 8,000 United States organizations rated by the nation’s largest independent charity evaluator achieve that mark.
Since 2002, using objective, data-driven analysis, Charity Navigator has awarded only the most fiscally responsible organizations a 4-star rating. In 2011, Charity Navigator added 17 metrics, focused on governance and ethical practices as well as measures of openness, to its ratings methodology. These “Accountability & Transparency” metrics, which account for 50 percent of a charity’s overall rating, reveal which charities have “best practices” that minimize the chance of unethical activities and whether they freely share basic information about their organization with their donors and other stakeholders.
“Cradles to Crayons’ coveted 4-star rating puts it in a very select group of high-performing charities,” according to Tim Gamory, COO of Charity Navigator. “Out of the thousands of nonprofits Charity Navigator evaluates, only one out of four earns 4 stars—a rating that demands rigor, responsibility, and commitment to openness. Cradles to Crayons’ supporters should feel much more confident that their hard-earned dollars are being used efficiently and responsibly when it acquires such a high rating.”
“We are thrilled to receive this recognition for the 7th year in a row,” said Lynn Margherio, Cradles to Crayons’ Founder and CEO. “It affirms our commitment to excellence in the nonprofit community—and to the important work we do, providing the essentials for childhood. We greatly value the critical resources our donors and volunteers so generously provide us and take our fiduciary and governance responsibilities very seriously.”
Working through its network of hundreds of Nonprofit Social Service Partners, and supported by tens of thousands of volunteers, Cradles to Crayons annually helps more than 150,000 children living in low-income and homeless situations.
About Cradles to Crayons
Cradles to Crayons provides children from birth through age 12 who live in homeless or low-income situations with the essential items they need to thrive—at home, at school, and at play. Cradles to Crayons supplies these items free of charge by engaging and connecting communities that have with communities that need, collecting new and like-new children’s items through grassroots community drives and corporate donations.
Cradles to Crayons is a national, non-profit organization headquartered in Cambridge, MA with locations in Boston Massachusetts and Philadelphia, PA. Through our signature Everyday Essentials program and seasonal initiatives—Gear Up for Winter, Gear Up for Baby, and Ready for School—donations of children’s products are sorted, inspected, and packaged by volunteers at our warehouses, called The Giving Factory®. Our “KidPacks,” backpacks and other items are then distributed through a collaborative network of social service agencies and school partners. For additional information, visitwww.cradlestocrayons.org.
About Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator, www.charitynavigator.org, is the largest charity evaluator in America and its website attracts more visitors than all other charity rating groups combined. The organization helps guide intelligent giving by evaluating the Financial Health and Accountability & Transparency of more than 8,000 charities. Charity Navigator accepts no advertising or donations from the organizations it evaluates, ensuring unbiased evaluations, nor does it charge the public for this trusted data. As a result, Charity Navigator, a 501 (c) (3) public charity itself, depends on support from individuals, corporations and foundations that believe it provides a much-needed service to America’s charitable givers. Charity Navigator, can be reached directly by telephone at (201) 818-1288, or by mail at 139 Harristown Road, Suite 101, Glen Rock, N.J., 07452.