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Bright Star Community Outreach Corp at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

Bright Star Community Outreach Corp

Our mission is to empower residents to share in the responsibility ofbuilding community through pooling resources and forming partnerships.we will accomplish our mission by developing innovative performancebased projects and programs to address issues of community engagement,economic development, education, children/youth and family.

$201k
Granted FY2023
7
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$45k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2023.

Youth Development$465kHuman Services$113kCommunity Improvement$49kArts & Culture$20k
02FY2023 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$30,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$2.1M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF METRO$45,000
CHAMP$45,000
YOUTH GUIDANCE$31,800
ALTERNATIVES INC$30,000
LADIES OF VIRTUE NFP$20,143
NEW COMMUNITY OUTREACH$18,000
CHICAGO YOUTH PROGRAMS INC$10,855
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY20–20, $21k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%CENTER OF HIGHER DEVELOPMENT: $6k → 14%YWCA METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $15k → 14%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

94%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$607k · 11 repeat orgs$40k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +55% since the first grant, against -50% for those funded once.

11 repeat relationships: 7 still active in FY2023, 4 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

11
4

Total granted

$607k
$40k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+55%
-50%

Still filing today

91%
100%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’20’21’22’23
EmploymentHuman ServicesEducationYouth DevelopmentPhilanthropyArts & CultureOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • BB
    BIG BROTHERS-BIG SISTERS OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO
    4× · 2020–2023 · $125k · revenue +25%
  • CM
    CHAMPS MALE MENTORING PROGRAM - CHIRISE
    2× · 2022–2023 · $75k · revenue +44%
  • LO
    LADIES OF VIRTUE
    4× · 2020–2023 · $67k · revenue +320%

Funded once

  • YM
    YWCA METROPOLITAN CHICAGOgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $15k · revenue +76%
  • SE
    SOUTH EAST CHICAGO COMMISSION
    one grant, 2020 · $11k · revenue -50%
  • SP
    SPARK PROGRAM INC
    one grant, 2022 · $8k · revenue -92%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
A Better Chicago

A better chicago is changing how chicago fights poverty by investing in bold ideas that create opportunity for our youth.

Human Services
2
Chicago Votes

Chicago Votes is a non-partisan, non-profit organization building a more inclusive democracy by putting power in the hands of young Chicagoans. We're engaging and developing a new generation of leaders by opening the doors of government,…

Civil Rights
3
Midtown-Metro Achievement Centers

Midtown-Metro Achievement Centers, through its Midtown Center for boys and Metro Achievement Center for girls, helps close the achievement gap for Chicago's urban youth ages eight through eighteen.

Education
4
Community Youth Development Institute

Community Youth Development Institute (CYDI) provides alternative schooling for at-risk teenagers through grants and contracts with Youth Connection Charter School, Alternative School Network, the City of Chicago Department of Family and…

Community Improvement
5
Chicago Youth Centers

To provide high-quality early learning and out-of-school time enrichment in under-resourced neighborhoods to holistically support children of all ages, their families, and their communities.

Youth Development
6
Thrive Chicago Nfp

Thrive chicago's mission is to prepare chicago's youth for a vibrant future by aligning efforts and outcomes from cradle to career.

Human Services
7
Chicago United for Equity

Connecting and amplifying the power of individuals to build a just, equitable, and inclusive city.

Civil Rights
8
Chicago Run

To promote the health and wellness of Chicago children through innovative, engaging, and sustainable youth running programs.

Philanthropy
9
Highsight

To provide academic & social support to inner-city chicago high school students. program provides scholarships, mentors & tutors to enable students to succeed in the high school of their choice.

Community Improvement
10
Chicago Youth Boxing Club

Provide at-risk youth with after school/summer programs for training and life skills.

Recreation & Sports
11
Girls On the Run - Chicago Inc

The organization is a nonprofit after school program that uses the power of running to teach girls, 3rd-8th grade, critical social emotional learning skills.

Recreation & Sports
12
Tutoring Chicago

Tutoring chicago delivers the power of education through one-to-one tutoring.

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Chicago Youth Programs Inc; the most unlike its peers is New Community Outreach. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

15 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/15
Grantees still filing
11/15
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

BIG BROTHERS-BIG SISTERS OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $125,000 · OtherBIG BROTHERS-BIG SISTERS OF METROPOLITA…CHICAGO YOUTH PROGRAMS INC: $52,626 · OtherCHICAGO YOUTH PROGRAMS INCNEW COMMUNITY OUTREACH: $30,000 · OtherNEW COMMUNITY OUTREACHSOUTH EAST CHICAGO COMMISSION: $10,735 · OtherSPARK PROGRAM INC: $8,000 · OtherCHAMPS MALE MENTORING PROGRAM - CHIRISE: $75,000 · EducationCHAMPS MALE MENTORING …Youth Guidance: $53,000 · EducationYouth GuidanceLIFT INC: $61,850 · EmploymentLIFT INCCHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE: $37,927 · EmploymentCHICAGO URBAN LEA…LADIES OF VIRTUE: $66,743 · Youth DevelopmentLADIES OF V…ALTERNATIVES INC: $60,000 · HealthALTERNATIV…REFLECTION FOUNDATION: $25,000 · PhilanthropyYWCA METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $15,000 · Human ServicesCENTER OF HIGHER DEVELOPMENT INC: $6,399 · Human ServicesSkyArt NFP: $20,000 · Arts & Culture
Other$226,361Education$128,000Employment$99,777Youth Development$66,743Health$60,000Philanthropy$25,000Human Services$21,399Arts & Culture$20,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetBIG BROTHERS-BIG SISTERS OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $125,000 over 4y, 0.8% of budgetCHAMPS MALE MENTORING PROGRAM - CHIRISE: $75,000 over 2y, 4.5% of budgetLADIES OF VIRTUE: $66,743 over 4y, 2.7% of budgetLIFT INC: $61,850 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetALTERNATIVES INC: $60,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetYouth Guidance: $53,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetCHICAGO YOUTH PROGRAMS INC: $52,626 over 4y, 1.2% of budgetCHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE: $37,927 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetNEW COMMUNITY OUTREACH: $30,000 over 2y, 5.3% of budgetREFLECTION FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetSkyArt NFP: $20,000 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetYWCA METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $15,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSOUTH EAST CHICAGO COMMISSION: $10,735 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetSPARK PROGRAM INC: $8,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetCENTER OF HIGHER DEVELOPMENT INC: $6,399 over 1y, 3.5% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

The Chicago Community…John D and Catherine …Polk Bros Foundation …Robert R McCormick Fo…Jpmorgan Chase Founda…Northwestern Memorial…United Way of Metropo…Gs Donor Advised Phil…AbbVie FoundationCharities Aid Foundat…National Philanthropi…The Bank of America C…
The Chicago Community TrustIL22.7× affinity10 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Chicago Community Trust · John D and Catherine T Macarthur Foundation · Polk Bros Foundation Inc · Robert R McCormick Foundation · Jpmorgan Chase Foundation · Northwestern Memorial HealthCare · United Way of Metropolitan Chicago Inc · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · AbbVie Foundation · Charities Aid Foundation America · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Bright Star Community Outreach Corp funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Bright Star Community Outreach Corp. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    7report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–75%
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 15 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2025) is on record and reports $30k of grant expense, but none of it to a named recipient. On a Form 990 that can mean grants abroad, filed by region only (Schedule F), grants under $5,000, which are not itemized, or a schedule referenced as an attachment the e-file does not carry. The figures above are therefore from FY2023, the most recent year this funder named its grantees.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Bright Star Community Outreach’s filings →

    More from the funding graph

    The unnamed billions
    grants reported with no recipient in the public record
    The regranting layer
    51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
    The DAF merry-go-round
    $9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
    The endowment market
    who holds foundation money, and what just moved
    The camps
    funders cluster by geography, not ideology
    By state
    where grant money is based, and what stays home