Rating 5 Popular Diabetes Non-Profits

Many in the Type 1 diabetes community want to work for a cure, but philanthropy is the closest most can come to helping find new treatments and cure research.

Some charity dollars go further than others, and donors want to know how their money is spent. Using the database of Charity Navigator, a philanthropy watchdog organization, we’ve compiled statistics and grades on five popular diabetes research organizations.

A couple of caveats:

• The scores are created from assessments of each organization’s most recent fiscal year data, as provided by Charity Navigator.
• While Charity Navigator is well-respected in the non-profit world, it is just one of several philanthropy watchdogs. Its assessment of a charity may differ from that of others.
• Some of the organizations below have regional arms that have their own Charity Navigator profile. In such cases, scores in this article only reflect the parent organization.

In alphabetical order:

1. American Diabetes Association

Charity Navigator Star Rating – 2 out of 4
Overall Charity Navigator score – 79.46 (out of 100)
Financial score – 71.11 (out of 100)
Accountability and Transparency – 97.00 (out of 100)

2012 Total revenue – $224,984,000
2012 Total expenses – $204,698,000

Expenses Breakdown (Fiscal Year ending 12/2012)
Program expenses – 65.8%
Fundraising – 28.8%
Administrative – 5.4%

Salary for Top Official (2012) – $575,132 (Larry Hauser, Chief Executive Officer)

2. Children’s Diabetes Foundation

Charity Navigator Star Rating – 3 out of 4
Overall Charity Navigator Score – 80.28 (out of 100)
Financial Score – 73.01 (out of 100)
Accountability and Transparency – 93 (out of 100)

2012 Total Revenue – $3,240,914
2012 Total Expenses – $4,006,306

Expenses Breakdown (Fiscal Year ending 12/2012)
Program Expenses – 60%
Fundraising – 30%
Administrative – 10%

Salary for Top Official (2012) – $119,104 (Chrissy Lerner, Executive Director)

3. Diabetes Research Institute Foundation

Charity Navigator Star Rating – 3 out of 4 stars
Overall Charity Navigator Score – 81.95 (out of 100)
Financial Score – 74.48 (out of 100)
Accountability and Transparency – 100 (out of 100)

2013 Total Revenue – $12,227,393
2013 Total Expenses – $11,211,559

Expenses Breakdown (Fiscal year ending 6/2013)
Program Expenses – 69.9%
Fundraising – 15.7%
Administrative – 14.4%

Salary for Top Official (2013) – $440,346 (Robert A. Pearlman, President/CEO)

4. The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF)

Charity Navigator Star Rating – 3 out of 4 stars
Overall Charity Navigator Score – 85.09 (out of 100)
Financial Score – 78.92 (out of 100)
Accountability and Transparency – 100 (out of 100)

2013 Total Revenue – $206,223,491
2013 Total Expenses – $209,495,741

Expenses Breakdown (Fiscal year 6/2013)
Program Expenses – 80.5%
Fundraising – 11.8%
Administrative – 7.6%

Salary for Top Official (2013) – President/CEO Jeffrey Brewer was not compensated
Salary for Next Top Official – $536,450 (Richard A. Insel, Executive Vice President, Research)

5. Joslin Diabetes Center

Charity Navigator Star Rating – 3 out of 4 stars
Overall Charity Navigator Score – 88.54 (out of 100)
Financial Score – 83.80 (out of 100)
Accountability and Transparency – 100 (out of 100)

2012 Total Revenue – $94,239,533
2012 Total Expenses – $89,954,142

Expenses Breakdown (2012)
Program Expenses – 78%
Fundraising – 2.8%
Administrative – 19.2%

Salary for Top Official (2012) – $437,726 (John L. Brooks III, President/CEO)