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CHARITY REVIEW
Issued: August 2026 Expires: August 2028

Trickle Up Program

Standards Not Met
Standards Not Met
8
(212) 255-9980
31 West 34th Street, Suite 7001
New York, NY, 10001
https://trickleup.org/
📄 Full Report 🖨️ Print 📋 BBB Charity Standards

Standards For Charity Accountability

Governance

  1. Board Oversight
  2. Board Size
  3. Board Meetings
  4. Board Compensation
  5. Conflict of Interest

Measuring Effectiveness

  1. Effectiveness Policy
  2. Effectiveness Report

Finances

  1. Program Expenses
  2. Fundraising Expenses
  3. Accumulating Funds
  4. Audit Report
  5. Detailed Expense Breakdown
  6. Accurate Expense Reporting
  7. Budget Plan

Fundraising & Info

  1. Truthful Materials
  2. Annual Report
  3. Website Disclosures
  4. Donor Privacy
  5. Cause Marketing Disclosures
  6. Complaints

Trickle Up Program does not meet the following 1 Standards for Charity Accountability:

Standard 8 (Program Service Expense Ratio)
Spend at least 65% of its total expenses on program activities.

Trickle Up does not meet this Standard because:

  • According to its audited financial statements for the year ended August 31, 2025, the organization spent $3,116,205 or 59.5% of its total expenses on programs.

The BBB Wise Giving Alliance requested but did not receive complete information from the organization and is unable to verify the organization's compliance with the following Standard(s) for Charity Accountability: 14

Trickle Up Program meets the remaining 18 Standards for Charity Accountability.

Stated Purpose:
"to bring breakthrough opportunities to the world's poorest and most vulnerable people."

Year, State Incorporated:
1981, CT

Trickle Up Program (Trickle Up) reports that it works to advance the economic and social well-being of impoverished individuals through partnering with governments, global institutions, and local organizations to provide social programs. The organization operates in India, Guatemala, Mexico, and Colombia, offering access to markets for microenterprises of their own that help them increase their incomes, opportunities, and agency. Trickle Up outreach focuses on those most excluded from traditional development efforts including women, refugees, persons with disabilities, and Indigenous people. The organization co-implements and implements programs, while also providing technical assistance working with state and local governments, local organizations, and civil society to scale solutions that create long-term, sustainable change. In 2025, Trickle Up states that its programs served 485,000 participants.

For the year ended August 31, 2025, Trickle Up Program's program expenses were:

Program implementation $1,536,870
Program support $1,054,443
Public education $295,002
Research $229,890
Total Program Expenses $3,116,205

Chief Executive
Lauren Hendricks, President

Compensation*
$90,317

Chair of the Board
Benjamin Segal

Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation
Teacher, Mott Hall Bronx High School

Board Size
21

Paid Staff Size
68

*2024 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.

Note: The organization's highest compensated employee was Rhonda Zapatka, Vice President of Development, receiving $198,963 in compensation.

Method(s) Used:
Direct mail appeals, Invitations to fund raising events, Grant proposals, Planned giving arrangements, Workplace Giving, Cryptocurrency

Fundraising costs were 15% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $7,157,743, are donations received as a result of fundraising activities.)

This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.

The following information is based on Trickle Up Program's audited financial statements for the year ended August 31, 2025.

Source of Funds
Contributions $6,658,085
Investment income, net $542,196
Bequests $286,381
In-kind contributions $158,467
Government grants and contracts $54,810
Interest income $25
Total Income $7,699,964

Programs: 59% Fundraising: 20% Administrative: 20%

Total Income $7,699,964
Total expenses: $5,239,694
  Program expenses $3,116,205
  Fundraising expenses $1,059,565
  Administrative expenses $1,063,924
  Other expenses $0
Income in Excess of Expenses $2,460,270
Beginning Net Assets $8,243,488
Other Changes In Net Assets $0
Ending Net Assets $10,703,758
Total Liabilities $651,105
Total Assets $11,354,863

Note: According to Trickle Up's audited financial statements for the year ended August 31, 2025, the organization received $158,467 contributed goods and services including public relations and video production ($147,500), legal services ($9,455), and other ($1,512).

An organization may change its practices at any time without notice. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgment. If the report is about a charity and states the charity meets or does not meet the Standards for Charity Accountability, it reflects the results of an evaluation of information and materials provided voluntarily by the charity. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the International Association of Better Business Bureaus.

This report is not to be used for fundraising or promotional purposes.

RELATED CONTENT

Report completed by:
BBB Wise Giving Alliance