Unbound

“The number of board members was changed to not less than five and no more than nine persons.”

“An independent accounting firm prepares the 990. The 990 is then reviewed by the organization's president/ceo and accounting personnel. Any questions and concerns the organization's president/ceo and accounting personnel have are addressed and any corrections or clarifications that need to be made are made. The 990 is then provided to the full board for their review. Any questions and concerns of the board are addressed and corrections or clarifications are made prior to filing the 990.”

“All board members annually disclose their involvement with other organizations, communities, employment, staff, vendors or any other associations that might potentially produce a conflict, regardless of the likelihood of an actual conflict arising. New board nominees also complete a disclosure form. When the board is to decide an issue that presents an unavoidable conflict of interest for a member, the member with the conflict abstains from participation in both the deliberation and vote. All employees annually sign a receipt and acknowledgement of unbound's code of conduct which forbids a conflict or the appearance of a conflict between the employee's personal interests and those of unbound. The employee's signature acknowledges their agreement to adhere to this code and to immediately disclose a suspected conflict of interest to a staff director, member of the human resources department or confidentially through unbound's independent reporting service.”

“The compensation of the President/CEO for June 2018-June 2019 was determined at the June 2018 Governing Board of Directors Meeting. Prior to this discussion, the President/CEO and the non-voting members of the board excused themselves from the board meeting. The voting members met with the Director of Human Resources who provided them with the following information which they used to determine the compensation amount. Using PayScale, which is an independent compensation consultant subscription program, market data research was reviewed based on current market pay for similar positions. Our Philosophy is to target the 25th to 50th percentile of the range where the job has been matched. It is also based on current market data within the "profit & non-profit" industries, containing up to 500 employees and matched on job responsibilities in the market place. The board considered other factors such as a comparison of compensation of executives from similar sponsorship organizations and a formal evaluation of job performance to determine the President/CEOs June 2018 - June 2019 compensation. The voting members then approved the annual salary for the President/CEO. Substantiation of the decision of the Boards determination was maintained by the Director of Human Resources. The compensation of the other officers (Treasurer and Secretary) was approved by their respective supervisor at Unbound. It was based on both a written job performance evaluation and a formal compensation system built for the entire organization utilizing the market pay PayScale evaluation program.”

“Unbound's articles of incorporation, audited financial statements, by-laws and conflict of interest policy along with irs forms 1023, 990 and 990-t are available for inspection at our offices. Unbound's audited financial statements and irs forms 990 and 990-t are posted on our website (www.unbound.org). Printed copies are available upon request.”

“Unbounds mission is to walk with the poor and marginalized of the world. 1. We provide personal attention and direct benefits to children, youth, aging and their families so they may live with dignity, achieve their desired potential and participate fully in society. 2. We invite people of goodwill to live in daily solidarity with the worlds poor through one-to-one sponsorship. 3. We build community by fostering relationships of mutual respect, understanding and support that are culturally diverse, empowering and without religious or other prejudice. Grounded in the Gospel call to serve the poor, Unbound is a lay Catholic organization working with persons of all faith traditions to create a worldwide community of compassion and service.”

“Total grants for the sponsorship program were $107.2 million in 2018. At the end of 2018, a total of 308,042 individuals in Latin America, Asia and Africa were sponsored through Unbound. They included 275,833 children and youth, 31,957 elders and 252 candidates studying for the priesthood or religious life. Following are examples of achievements in the sponsorship program, as sponsored individuals and their families partnered with Unbound to identify the unique challenges they must overcome, set their own goals and formulate plans to achieve them. Unbounds sponsorship program connects children, youth, elders and their families with individual sponsors and supportive local communities of staff members and other families. Through sponsorship, individuals and families have resources and a solid support network to begin to chart their own course out of poverty. In 2018, Unbound had programs in 18 countries, including Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, the Philippines, Tanzania and Uganda. Sponsors - through the monthly financial contributions they make and letters they receive from their sponsored friends - experience a sense of connection with someone in another part of the world and satisfaction knowing they are helping another human being reach their potential. Sponsors also have the opportunity to write to their sponsored friends to offer their encouragement and build rewarding relationships. Unbound had 257,977 sponsors from the U.S. and around the world at the end of 2018. Sponsored individuals and their families partner with Unbound to make program and benefit decisions that help them meet their basic needs and develop potential over the course of their time in the program, which is sometimes 18 years or more. Sponsored individuals and their families use financial assistance to help meet needs such as education, nutrition, housing improvements, transportation and health care. They also have access to leadership and economic development opportunities related to financial literacy, skill development and income generation. Sponsorship requires active participation from families as the assistance is highly personalized. Families take a central role in deciding sponsorship benefits, and in forming support networks in which they encourage and are accountable to each other. Small support groups of parents and guardians, mostly made up of mothers, are key in the sponsorship programs success. Outcomes vary but typically relate to education, leadership development, improved health and nutrition status, dignified housing, skill development and increased income through livelihood opportunities for families. Monitoring program success Monitoring and evaluation of programs Unbound is committed to learning from our work and ensuring that it makes a positive impact in the lives of children, youth, elders and families around the world. The organization asks two basic questions to earn donor trust and be at our best for those we work with: 1. Did we do what we said we were going to do? This is program monitoring. 2. Did it make a difference? This is program evaluation. Unbound distinguishes between monitoring and evaluation and maintains separate but complementary strategies. Monitoring: The principal purpose of monitoring is accountability. Regular program monitoring is conducted to ensure fidelity in the organizational structure, development of programs, implementation of policies and the appropriate use of finances. Some of this monitoring happens across distance with regular reporting, emails and phone calls. Much of it happens with personal, on-site visits from Unbound's Kansas City headquarters staff. Unbounds monitoring strategy includes: 1. Visits made annually to each project for staff development, program support and assessments 2. Financial audits conducted in each project 3. Program audits conducted in each pro”

“Sponsorship helps children achieve a level of education that prepares them to compete with peers for jobs and be educated community members, parents and leaders. At a global level, at the point of leaving the program, 75 percent of sponsored children achieved a level of schooling comparable to or above national peer averages, according to data gathered from 2011-2014. This means that Unbound students - despite marginalization based on economic, social and geographic factors - were able to compete and excel alongside students from all socioeconomic brackets and areas within their countries. Of these former sponsored children, 51 percent achieved educational levels a year or more above their national peer averages. The number jumped to 59 percent achieving a year or more above their national peer averages when looking at the experience of sponsored girls. This, along with country-level analysis, indicated a specific impact on girls education and a closing or reversing of the prominent gender gap present in many communities. In Guatemala, for example, sponsored children, on average, achieved almost three years of schooling more than the national average for their peers. And in Unbound's Quezon program in the Philippines, 57 percent of sponsored youth pursued post-secondary education compared to 30 percent of their peers. New education data is being collected in 2019. Families Sponsorship impacts the sponsored child and the entire family. Unbounds direct work through a personalized benefit model and parent groups means families are able to best allocate resources for their children and direct how the program supports their development as families. Most sponsored children have representation in the program through small parent/guardian groups. These groups provide the space for families to have a voice in the program and be part of a supportive community, addressing two significant components of poverty: lack of choices and isolation. In 2017, an evaluation measuring the empowerment of mothers of sponsored children was performed. It compared those mothers to mothers who are waiting for their children to be sponsored. The evaluation found that parents of children sponsored through Unbound displayed a stronger level of ownership of psychological assets - such as happiness, control, goal setting and self-esteem - than the wait-list parents did. Unbound mothers were members in community groups, organizations, networks or associations as well. Mothers and guardians in Unbound reported feeling they are having a greater impact on their communities. Thirty percent of Unbound mothers said they were involved in making decisions within their communities compared to 16 percent of mothers in the comparison group. Evaluation results showed how more women in Unbound are taking economic risks starting small businesses to enact change. More women in the Unbound program have their own businesses, and fewer women in the program are unemployed than mothers in the comparison group. More mothers in Unbound also reported having complete choice in deciding or changing their occupations. This evaluation was a follow-up to a 2013 global evaluation on the same topic. The 2017 study revealed that 90 percent of mothers of sponsored children believed they had the power to change their familys situation, and 63 percent reported they were active in solving problems in their communities, among other findings on participation and empowerment indicators. Unbound is now in the fifth year of a six-year longitudinal data collection on economic outcomes for sponsored members and their families. The evaluation includes both quantitative and qualitative data and follows families from the time they begin the program. Elders Elders in communities where Unbound works face challenges related to health, access to care and medicine, and loneliness. Unbound seeks to overcome these challenges through monthly benefits such as food assistance, help with health and medical expenses,”

“Unbound recognizes sponsors and other benefactors not merely as donors but, first and foremost, as highly valued and respected members of the Unbound community. Both sponsors and sponsored persons have something to gain from the sponsorship relationship, and toward that end Unbound is committed to helping sponsors become more aware of the realities of global poverty and grow in human solidarity. The staff at Unbound take exceptional care in communications with sponsors, whether dealing with routine account matters or in the production of publications and digital content. The goal is for sponsors to be informed about what happens in programs so they understand how their contributions are being used and become more invested in the lives of those they help. In October through December of 2017, Unbound conducted a survey to determine what sponsors value about the sponsorship relationship and where communication fits into it. Respondents were asked about ways they engage with Unbound. Among the findings were: 1. Eighty-five percent of respondents reported they read printed material they receive in the mail from Unbound (including publications and information included with payment receipts). 2. Fifty-two percent reported that they read emails from Unbound. 3. Twenty-five percent of survey respondents reported they visit the Unbound website. 4. Of those who reported visiting the website, a large majority, 85 percent, stated the reason they visit is to send eLetters to their sponsored friends. Secondary reasons were to make payments or learn more about Unbound. 5. Fourteen percent of sponsors taking the survey reported that they call Unbound for questions, comments or needs related to their sponsorship. 6. Nine percent of survey respondents reported they have hosted or volunteered at an event promoting Unbound. 7. Five percent of respondents reported they read Unbound's blog or social media updates. Perhaps the most significant indicator of a quality sponsor experience is that Unbound maintains a high sponsor retention rate. Unbound ended 2018 with a retention rate of 92.8 percent. Another indicator of a quality sponsor experience is the number of people, 31,557 in 2018, who sponsor more than one child or elderly person through the organization. Sponsors who travel on Unbound awareness trips have a special opportunity to deepen their experience by meeting their sponsored friends, learning about their sponsored friends lives and cultures, and seeing firsthand the change individuals and families are creating with their support. In 2018, 725 people participated in 30 awareness trips in 12 countries.”

“Following are examples of achievements in education as Unbound works with students in our scholarship program. Educational support provided by Unbound's scholarship program helps talented older students who, because of economic circumstances, are struggling to continue their educations. The program is based on principles of perseverance, leadership and service to the community. The scholarship program complements the educational support provided by the Unbound sponsorship program, with 52 percent of scholarship students also sponsored. Unbound scholarships have helped students in communities around the world achieve their educational goals. Students are able to complete their educations, follow their chosen career paths and be of service to the larger community. Scholarships are used for needs such as secondary, post-secondary and vocational school tuition; transportation; school supplies and books. Students are selected by local program staffs based on economic need, commitment to completing their educations, demonstrated leadership potential and interest in community service. Scholarship students participate in service projects as a requirement of the program. Scholarships are intended as supplemental assistance, and students and their families contribute what they can toward educational costs. In 2018, scholarship grants to Unbound field offices totaled more than $3.5 million. Scholarships were awarded to 8,835 students in Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, the Philippines, Tanzania and Uganda. Many scholars are sponsored youth who need extra financial help in addition to sponsorship support to complete their educations. Qualified non-sponsored older students identified by local Unbound staffs as being in need of educational assistance are also eligible for scholarships and represent 48 percent of those awarded. The service requirement is an important component of the program. Service may include tutoring, helping children in the sponsorship program write letters to their sponsors in the U.S., translating letters or performing work related to their fields of study. A number of former scholars work for Unbound as staff members after they graduate. They bring to their work a wealth of knowledge and a unique perspective on the program and their communities. Monitoring program success Scholars are required to maintain good grades in addition to fulfilling service requirements. Local Unbound staffs monitor students to make sure they are meeting program requirements, and they provide annual reports on the scholarship programs. Unbound has also initiated qualitative evaluation of the scholarship program with alumni, utilizing a group mind-mapping process and individual interviews to explore long-term outcomes. Examples of program success Unbound conducted Ripple-Effect Mapping (REM) in 2015 with 32 program alumni from rural communities in Guatemala and in 2013 with more than 80 program alumni in the Metro Manila area of the Philippines. REM is a participatory and qualitative evaluation method used to learn the intended and unintended results of the program. While the contexts of groups were dramatically different, with different geographies and significant cultural differences, the similarities between the outcomes strengthen the argument for what might be Unbound's contribution through the scholarship and sponsorship programs. Alumni participating in the qualitative evaluation in the Philippines, on average three years out of the program, were pursuing careers such as teaching, nursing, accounting and architectural design. Alumni participating in the evaluation in Guatemala, on average six years out of the program, mentioned employment as teachers, police officers, bakers and small-business owners. Most of the evaluation participants were employed on a full-time basis. Among the key findings were: 1. Gratitude”

“Change in uninsured annuity obligations $1,536”