826 Valencia

“Amended Articles of Incorporation to provide specific language around dissolution, in order to comply with property tax exemption status requirements.”

“The executive and finance committees of the organization's board review the 990, after which, a copy is provided to the whole Board prior to filing.”

“It is the policy of the organization to require fiduciaries to provide full disclosure of any contemplated or existing activities or transactions that could create a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict of interest. Fiduciaries include each director, officer, and administrative employee of the organization. Each fiduciary must execute a conflict of interest disclosure statement and questionnaire. The board of directors reviews all disclosures and potential conflicts and recommend a course of action, if necessary.”

“The independent board determines the compensation of the Executive Director based on its evaluation of his/her performance and by gathering data on comparable compensation within the industry. The review that was conducted was formal, and compensation was approved by the full board.”

“Governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements are made available to the public upon request.”

“OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 4: Workshops:In our Workshop program, we served 208 students during the 2019-2020 school year. Students learned about the concept of community and reflected on the different communities to which they belong. Students crafted odes to important community members (teachers, family members, sports coaches, friends, etc.) and wrote superhero tales that address community challenges such as pollution, homelessness, food scarcity, and bullying. Another unit of students also learned about the publishing process, promoting process, persuasive writing, and digital advertising in support of their published book We Are the Stars. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 5: Summer Workshops and Camps:We served 510 students in summer 2019 through writing and science-themed day camps and workshops. Programs included: A) Exploring Words Summer Camp - where K-5 students complete a series of iterative science experiments and developed creative narratives based on their findings; B) Exploring Leadership Summer Camp - where 6 - 8th graders develop leadership and communication skills through collaborative project-based activities, reflective writing, and public speaking; C) Day trips for visiting summer camp programs where students explore comic book writing, podcasting, and hands-on science; and D) Young Author's Workshop (YAW), an creative writing camp where high schoolers explore a range of literary genres and compose literary works. IIn 2019, we expanded YAW from 2 to 3 weeks and added a literary resident artist (LRA). Our first LRA was Vicki Vertiz. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 6: College Career Readiness:826 Valencia provides middle and high schoolers with opportunities to build skills, knowledge, networks, and resources that strengthen the high school-to-college-to-career pathway. In FY20, we awarded six 4-year $20,000 college scholarships to graduating seniors who will also receive ongoing college persistence and completion support through our partner organization, ScholarMatch. We provided another 200 12th-graders with college application essay support through multi-week online workshops with partner schools. Our Youth Leadership Advisory Board (YLAB) offered paid internships, leadership development, and career readiness support to 47 teens. We also provided hands-on work experience and stipends to 59 high school and college students and transitional aged youth (TAY) who interned with our education, volunteer, design, and store teams. OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 7: Other Program Accomplishments include the operation of 3 retail stores, 1 at each of our centers. The stores sell educational materials, books for children, and other whimsical children's toys, and serve as a community touch-point in the neighborhoods where we operate. Other Program Accomplishments also include the design and publishing infrastructure for our various publishing programs, and our volunteer programs.”