A Childs Notebook

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
825260285
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2020
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone
2068873454
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Development Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$433,020
Expenses
$307,350
Assets
$325,760
Liabilities
$1,788

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Justine Miley (Executive Director)
  • Michelle Sinnett (President)
  • Cindy Sharek (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Justine Miley (Executive Director): $79,748 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

A Child's Notebook envisions a world where all children have access to a quality education. To make that vision a reality, we partner with local communities across Southeast Asia to improve student learning and success. We believe that talent exists in every person and every community-but the opportunity to realize that talent is not equally shared. Education is the most powerful lever for unlocking human potential, breaking cycles of poverty, reducing inequality, and building a thriving future for all.

What it reported doing in 2025

Since 2018, A Child's Notebook has supported students facing barriers due to poverty, geographic isolation, and ethnic marginalization. We focus on partnering with communities that often lack access to funding and receive limited attention from other organizations. Currently, most of our programs are in Laos, alongside a small grantmaking program supporting Burmese migrants and refugees along the Thai-Myanmar border. Our programs focus on: * Reducing financial barriers by providing scholarships to middle school, high school, and vocational college students * Improving learning outcomes through after-school programs and school supplies * Expanding access to safe learning environments by building schools, dormitories, and WASH facilities. .

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 72% for direct work, and 28% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 57
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 56.8%; rating input score 57
  • Program expense ratio: 79.7%; rating input score 80
  • Fundraising efficiency: $18.94 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 92.8%; rating input score 93; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 29%; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.06; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 25.9%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.8% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 17.8% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.9% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 56.8% of revenue deployed · 79.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $245K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $80K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2022 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 57/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 54/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 43/100.