The organization has earned praise from Charity Navigator for the fifth consecutive year
Island Harvest Food Bank’s robust financial health, sound governance and a longstanding commitment to accountability and transparency have earned it a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator. This is the fifth consecutive time that Island Harvest Food Bank has earned this top distinction, according to Randi Shubin Dresner, president and CEO, of the Bethpage- and Hauppauge-based hunger-relief organization.
“Island Harvest outperforms most other charities in America. This exceptional designation from Charity Navigator sets Island Harvest apart from its peers and demonstrates to the public its trustworthiness,” said Michael Thatcher, Charity Navigator’s president and CEO.
Only a quarter of charities rated by Charity Navigator receive the distinction of a four-star rating, according to Thatcher, noting that Island Harvest Food Bank belongs to a “preeminent group of charities working to overcome our world’s most pressing challenges.”
“It’s important our contributors’ trust that we’re using their donations wisely to support our efforts in addressing the critical issue of hunger and food insecurity on Long Island,” said Shubin Dresner. “Our consistent four-star Charity Navigator rating demonstrates to our supporters our good governance and financial accountability.”
More than 94 percent of expended resources by Island Harvest Food Bank go directly to programs and services that support more than 300,000 Long Islanders facing hunger and food insecurity.
“Based on its four-star rating, people can trust that their donations are going to a financially responsible and ethical charity when they decide to support Island Harvest Food Bank,” said Thatcher.
Since 2002, using objective analysis, Charity Navigator has awarded only the most fiscally responsible organizations a four-star rating. In 2011, Charity Navigator added 17 metrics, focused on governance and ethical practices as well as measures of openness, to its ratings methodology. These Accountability & Transparency metrics, which account for 50 percent of a charity’s overall rating, reveal which charities operate following industry best practices and whether they are open to their donors and stakeholders.
For more information on Island Harvest, visit www.islandharvest.org.
