South Carolina · Nonprofit
LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP
LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP (South Carolina) receives grants from 4 organizations whose IRS filings report $2,779,234 to it, the largest being SOUTH CAROLINA FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS BOARD OF TRUSTEES ($2,738,734). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $3.9M
- Funders on record
- 4
- Grants received
- $2.8M
- Net assets
- $147k
What Lancaster County First Steps to School Readiness Partnership does
Mission
Section 59-152-10 of the south carolina code established the south carolina first steps to school readiness program, which is a comprehensive, results-oriented initiative for improving early childhood development by providing, through local partnerships, public and private funds, and support for high- quality early childhood development and educations services for children by providing support for their families' efforts toward enabling their children to reach school ready to succeed. Our mission is that every south carolina child will arrive at kindergarten ready to succeed.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Early education: early head start-a comprehensive program designed to support high-quality early care and education, parenting and family support and community-level supports and services for low-income pregnant women with children age 3 and under, young children and their families. Families receive weekly home visits by early head start staff and two group meetings are held monthly for enrolled parents and families.
$2,998,335 spent81% of program spendingParenting support: incredible years- a series of group-based interventions for parents, children and teachers that are designed to increase social and emotional fitness and prevent, reduce and treat behavioral and emotional problems in children up to age 12. This program targets parents and teachers working primarily with children ages 3-8, as well as children directly. Dolly parton's imagination library- a book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth until they begin school, regardless of family income.
$435,791 spent12% of program spendingCore functions school transition-developed by south carolina first steps - and identified as a promising state practice by the national governor's association in 2005 - countdown to kindergarten is a home visitation program pairing the families of high-risk rising kindergartners with their future teachers during the summer before school entry. Teachers complete six visits with each family, centered upon classroom and content expectations.
$142,099 spent4% of program spendingChild care quality -first steps recognizes the importance of a healthy start in maximizing both school readiness and the long-term well being of the state's children. The initiative partners with families, the medical community and other stakeholders to leverage resources for- and increase awareness of- the healthcare, nutrition and early developmental needs of the state's young children.
$147,768 spent4% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $3,723,993.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2017 to 2018, from $215k to $483k (+124%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2017 86% · 2018 84% · 2019 92% · 2020 99% · 2021 93% · 2022 70% · 2023 93%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
100% of LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP’s revenue is contributions — more reliant on donations than three-quarters of its peers (48% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 4 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Board chair
Dr Paul N Mckenzie
Board chair
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 2 funders, grant income rose $227k → $410k.
1 of 4 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 0% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP leans on a few funders — its largest provides 99% of grant income and the top three 100%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
100% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 100% · 2018 100% · 2019 100% · 2020 100% · 2021 95% · 2022 97% · 2023 98% — broadly stable.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Where its funders are
100% of LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP's grant income comes from South Carolina funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $10k arriving through sponsors registered in 1 state is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP's funding base is broadening — from 1 funders to 2 as grant income climbed.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 9,398 education nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Organizations like LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In South Carolina
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
99% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
100%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Part of a family of 1 related entity
- South Carolina First Steps To · exempt
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP?
- LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP (South Carolina) receives grants from 4 organizations whose IRS filings report $2,779,234 to it, the largest being SOUTH CAROLINA FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS BOARD OF TRUSTEES ($2,738,734). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP have?
- IRS filings report 4 organizations giving $2,779,234 in grants to LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP, 2 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP?
- SOUTH CAROLINA FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS BOARD OF TRUSTEES is the largest funder on record, with $2,738,734 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like LANCASTER COUNTY FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS PARTNERSHIP find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in South Carolina. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Lancaster County First Steps to School Readiness Partnership →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 4 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing