GOLD2023

Wayfinders

Helping Opportunity Find Every Child

aka formerly R Bruce Irons Camp Fund   |   Charlotte, NC   |  http://www.wayfindersnc.org

Mission

Wayfinders ignites students’ potential by expanding their confidence, connections, and horizons. We achieve this through summer camps, year-round enrichment programs, and mentor relationships for self-motivated, underserved students.

Notes from the nonprofit

Wayfinders, known for over 30 years as Bruce Irons Camp Fund, addresses academic and social capital gaps by including low-income, high potential 4th through 12th-grade students in a 5-8 year-long mentoring program paired with meaningful summer experiences and year-round enrichment programming. Students are motivated to be successful in school, their self-confidence increases, and they develop leadership skills. These intermediary outcomes influence long-term outcomes such as academic performance, school attendance, and ultimately, graduation from high school.

Ruling year info

2003

Executive Director

Mollie James

Main address

725 Providence Rd Ste 212

Charlotte, NC 28207 USA

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Formerly known as

Bruce Irons Canp Fund

EIN

55-0825218

NTEE code info

Educational Services and Schools - Other (B90)

Youth Development Programs (O50)

Children's and Youth Services (P30)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

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Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Address Summer Slide and Increase Social Capital for At-Risk Students

Wayfinders, known for over 30 years as Bruce Irons Camp Fund (BICF), addresses academic and social capital gaps by including low-income and minority children in a 5-8 year-long program centered around summer camp. Admitted to the program as fourth graders, Wayfinders students attend three summers of 2- to 3-week overnight camp in the NC mountains (grades 4-6) and three summers of STEAM camp at UNC Greensboro or engineering camp at CPCC (grades 7-9). In high school, Wayfinders participants are matched with a custom summer program, such as another year at a specialty camp, counselor-in-training at a summer camp, job shadowing, or paid internships. Participants are also included in year-round enrichment programs designed to reinforce learning and increase social capital, such as monthly swim lessons, technology camp, hiking excursions, community service activities, theater and museum outings, financial literacy workshops, and targeted leadership programs. Each student is outfitted for camp with a trunk, bedding, and other essentials, and they are paired with a dedicated adult mentor who prepares them for camp and supports them for all eight years.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Economically disadvantaged people

Where we work

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of children who have a sense of their own feelings and an ability to express empathy for others

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Address Summer Slide and Increase Social Capital for At-Risk Students

Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Context Notes

We survey parents about their child's self esteem, friendships with people different than them, levels of responsibility/maturity, and confidence in their ability to do well in school.

Total number of organization members

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Address Summer Slide and Increase Social Capital for At-Risk Students

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

The number listed here is the number of scholars served annually. Wayfinders is in a period of growth, increasing the number of scholars we serve each year.

Number of individuals applying skills learned through the organization's training

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Address Summer Slide and Increase Social Capital for At-Risk Students

Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Context Notes

Annually, we survey parents, mentors, and scholars. Over the past 3 years between 96% and 100% of parents have reported witnessing their child using a new skill learned through Wayfinders.

Average number of service recipients per month

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Address Summer Slide and Increase Social Capital for At-Risk Students

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Wayfinders provides monthly enrichment activities for scholars. Scholars and mentors also meet monthly. We anticipate these numbers increasing as the number we serve also continues to increase.

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Financials

Wayfinders
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

Wayfinders

Board of directors
as of 07/19/2023
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

George Metz

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Not applicable

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 2/1/2021
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Sexual orientation
Decline to state
Disability status
Decline to state

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

No data

Disability

No data

Equity strategies

Last updated: 02/01/2021

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
  • We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
  • We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
  • We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
Policies and processes
  • We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
  • We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.