Beacon Academy Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
731710051
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Boston, MA, USA
Phone
6174232266
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,615,940
Expenses
$3,377,105
Assets
$17,845,976
Liabilities
$91,047

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

Leadership & pay

32 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHARLES E CARTER (CEO & HEAD OF SCHOOL)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHARLES E CARTER (CEO & HEAD OF SCHOOL): $285,846 total reported compensation
  • NICOLE BAKER (DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT & ENGAGEMENT): $135,743 total reported compensation
  • ASHLEY MIRANDA (DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI SUPPORT SERVICES): $124,959 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Beacon academy closes the opportunity gap for a group of greater boston's determined and inquisitive students. Through education and advocacy, our community supports students as they develop and embrace their identities and build lives of agency and impact.

What it reported doing in 2024

Our 10-year program is unique because we follow beacon academy alumni after the academy year. We prioritize communication and growth by offering mental health and wellness support, career readiness mentorship and guidance, and other services to collaboratively identify and address their needs. We provide educational support services to nearly 400 alumni to ensure continuity of guidance, resources, and connections to beacon academy after graduation.for our alumni in high school, these educational support services include a 9th-grade transition program, bi-annual care package, and personal visits. We also offer sat prep, essay writing support, college application assistance, and financial aid help to maintain regular contact and reinforce the strategies and values acquired during their academy year. Since 2017, 98% of our alumni have graduated from high school.on average, 92% of our active alumni gain admittance to four-year colleges, and most receive financial aid packages that exceed expected family contributions. College alumni take advantage of a wide range of professional development programs, including resume workshops, panel discussions with industry leaders, and access to internships and jobs through our beaconconnect platform. We also host several annual events for all alumni, continuously seeking ways to stay connected.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 79% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 89% 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 - 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: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.5%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 71.6%; rating input score 72
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.51 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 26.8%; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.28; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 26.8%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.9% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.1% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.5% of revenue deployed · 71.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 26 of 26 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $286K · 32 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $170K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.