Atlanta Young Singers of Callanwolde Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
581249295
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Atlanta, GA, USA
Phone
4048733365
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$307,195
Expenses
$313,668
Assets
$474,178
Liabilities
$148,588

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LAURIE THOMAS WILLIAMS (PRESIDENT, BOARD OF DIRECTORS)
  • LORRIE THOMAS ROSS (VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD OF DIRECTOR)
  • VIRGINIA M THOMPSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • VIRGINIA M THOMPSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $52,000 total reported compensation
  • PAIGE F MATHIS (MUSIC DIRECTOR): $50,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Atlanta young singers educates and develops young talented singers ages 5-18 and thrills audiences with innovative programming, professionally performed music, and multidisciplinary offerings and collaborations, including extensive music education. Mission statement: ays nurtures youth ages 5-18, developing self-confidence, music fluency, creative life skills, highest standards of musical performance, and deep respect for others through our comprehensive education program.

What it reported doing in 2024

Ays is a program for the training of youth between the ages of 5 to 18 in choral training, thereby developing their appreciation of and talent in music. Over 135 children and 10,000 audience members are directly affected by our programs. 25-30 performances are presented each year. Six rehearsals are held each week in 3 locations around the greater atlanta metro area. There are five choir levels - introduction to music making, training choir, treble concert choir, tour choir, and youth chorale. All levels participate in a performance/choral festival tour each season; tcc and yc travel internationally or nationally for 7-14 days on alternating summers; in 2025, youth chorale traveled to barcelona, madrid, and toledo, spain to participate in the barcelona international choral festival with rollo dilworth; training & intro to music making choirs performed for new audiences in dhalonega and gainesville, ga. In addition to the choral program for children ages 7-18, ays also offers a non-auditioned class - together, we sing! - for k-1 students. As a result of the 2020 pandemic and new techniques learned, ays offers both online and in-person programming. Ays offered rehearsals, performances, camps, auditions, and outreach programming online and in-person sept-aug 2025.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 95% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 85
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 73
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 93.5%; rating input score 93
  • Program expense ratio: 91.3%; rating input score 91
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 77.8%; rating input score 78; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2.1%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.51; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 32.5%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.7% per year; rating input score 0; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 93.5% of revenue deployed · 91.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 9 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $286K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $52K · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 34/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 52/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 15/100.