RAICES Q2 2026 Update: Executive Update
This summary provides a high-level overview of organizational performance, strategic progress, and cultural health following the Q2 2026 Board of Directors meeting.
Organizational Health and Culture
RAICES continues to build upon the momentum of our "One RAICES" strategic vision, institutionalizing cross-site collaboration, staff recognition, and operational alignment.
40th Anniversary Celebration: After closing out the first half of 2026, RAICES celebrated four decades of service by hosting over 300 team members, family, and volunteers for a day-long wellness and community event at Green Acres Golf & Games in San Antonio, Texas.
Institutional Connectivity: RAICES launched The Roots Report, a quarterly digital and print internal newsletter that serves as a structural cadence for transparency, cross-departmental alignment and morale.
Workforce Stability: With an average team member tenure of five years, RAICES has an exceptional 6% turnover rate. This significantly outperforms both the 12% general market benchmark and the average nonprofit industry standard, which typically fluctuates between 19% and 22%.
Proactive Planning for Refugee Services: Anticipated program contractions stemming from volatile federal funding streams have been effectively buffered through strategic foresight, ensuring both service continuity and the retention of a minimum of 40% of the department's team after the end of the current funding period.
Financial Performance
RAICES maintained strong fiscal discipline and liquidity through the first half of 2026, while proactively adjusting for federal funding shifts and macro-environment disruptions.
Operating Performance: The Expense-to-Revenue Ratio stands at 109%, outperforming the 110% budgeted target for the midpoint of the year. Operational cash reserves remain strong at approximately six months of cash on hand, excluding investment reserves.
Fundraising Momentum: Supported by an adapted monthly donor sustainer model that achieved an exceptional 92% retention rate alongside a Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) of $1.90, donation performance stands 15% ahead of the budgeted target, despite experiencing a slowdown since Q1.
Budget Amendment: A midyear budget amendment adjusted the projected 2026 Expense-to-Revenue Ratio to 109% from 105%, excluding investment reserve earnings, to absorb Refugee Services funding contractions and federal shutdown-related bond refund delays, while increasing general operating allocations for core program services.
Programmatic Impact
RAICES served a total of 5,033 individuals across all programs during the first half of 2026.
Refugee Services: Reallocated $200,000 in Social Adjustment Services personnel funds into direct food assistance to address SNAP disqualifications under federal legislation (H.R. 1). In response to upcoming federal sub-grant contractions, RAICES finalized plans for a dual-funding model—federal sub-grants plus unrestricted funds—to launch in October 2026.
Removal and Community Integration Services (RCIS): Achieved a 45% consultation-to- retainer conversion rate, up from 36% at the end of Q1, opened 1,366 new cases, and secured 173 favorable decisions on behalf of clients. Despite temporary capacity constraints due to natural staffing transitions, RAICES implemented cross-site coverage and developed consultation conversion pilots, including walk-in and clinic models.
Rights Advocacy (Asylum Access Services, Litigation, External Affairs): Outperformed key performance indicators with an 82% habeas-related liberty rate (v. 75% goal) and a 48% advocacy consent rate (v. 33% goal). Published more than three-dozen real-time policy bulletins, released the foundational brief "Beyond the Prison State," and filed additional Flores declarations detailing conditions at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center. Secured major litigation victories in Dorcas International v. USCIS, vacating administrative application freezes, and Portillo Moreno v. United States of America et al., defeating a motion to dismiss. Features in The Guardian, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and CBS News further solidified RAICES as a premier national voice.
Looking Ahead
RAICES remains committed to deepening the impact of our program services during this period of extraordinary community need, while ensuring rigorous alignment with our fiscal objectives.
Refugee Services Strategic Pivot: Developing case management backstops, economic empowerment programs, and adult education offerings, with specialized tracks for young refugees (ages 18–24) and domestic violence survivors.
Family Justice Project (FJP): Launching an initiative addressing critical gaps in habeas assistance and removal defense for detained individuals and families. FJP establishes a cross-functional legal team providing direct representation and pro bono referrals, coordinating seamlessly with Asylum Access Services (AAS).
