Atlas Preparatory Academy Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
392032539
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Milwaukee, WI, USA
Phone
4143850771
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Primary, Elementary Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,384,348
Expenses
$5,231,038
Assets
$6,473,417
Liabilities
$2,055,232

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Michelle G Lukacs (Pres/Exec Dir): $175,762 total reported compensation
  • Steven E Menden (Chairman/Dir): $152,421 total reported compensation
  • Kaitlyn J Menden (Business Services): $127,674 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of Atlas Preparatory Academy is to provide an educational program which engages our students in learning experiences that meet their academic, social, and emotional needs, in a multicultural environment based on mutual respect.

What it reported doing in 2024

Atlas Preparatory Academy, Inc. operated a multi cultural K4 through 12th grade school enrolling an average of 429 full time students with 14 students receiving tuition waiver scholarships and substantially all students qualifying for the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program which provides tuition assistance to low income students and their families.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 96% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 81
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 71
  • Sustainability: 40
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 89.3%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 94.7%; rating input score 95
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 50%; rating input score 50; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.8%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.24; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.32; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.1%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -3.7% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -2.5% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.2% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 89.3% of revenue deployed · 94.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 1 of 2 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $176K · 6 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $87K reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes grants and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 50/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 44/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 44/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 22/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 33/100.