Axis
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 260334744
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO, USA
- Phone
- 8887192947
- Rating
- 70
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Education N.E.C.
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,932,996
- Expenses
- $3,497,750
- Assets
- $2,978,425
- Liabilities
- $832,514
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
16 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- David Eaton (President & CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- David Eaton (President & CEO): $166,937 total reported compensation
- Toben Heim (COO): $139,125 total reported compensation
- Mark Phillips (CFO (part year)): $130,887 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Our mission is to see all caring adults equipped with the conversation, discipleship, and culture translation skills needed to reach the next generation for Christ.
What it reported doing in 2024
Our vision is that parents can have "one conversation" with their kid that lasts a lifetime, and to see all caring adults equipped with the conversation, discipleship, and culture translation skills needed to reach the rising generation for Christ through that conversation. In 2024 Axis: 1) Ended paid subscriptions and made resources free for all families. 2) Increased our active and engaged email list by 199%. 3) Increased the total number of parents and youth served by Axis resources by 829%. 4) Purchased a building with office space, a new filming studio, and a new podcast studio. 5) Created 200+ new resources on Social Media, Cultural Trends, Mental Health, Gender/Sexuality/Identity, Technology & Media, Christianity. 6) Made resources available on YouTube, including new 7 minute video resources.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 54
- Transparency & Controls: 79
- Accountability: 87
- Sustainability: 46
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 55.5%; rating input score 55
- Program expense ratio: 61.9%; rating input score 62
- Fundraising efficiency: $7.39 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 11.1%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.85; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 12.5%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 11.8% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 14.7% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 24.4% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 55.5% of revenue deployed · 61.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 12 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $167K · 16 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 3 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 28/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 32/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 36/100.