Believe Schools

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
825244309
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
St Louis, MO, USA
Phone
3145806060
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Graduate, Professional Schools (Separate Entities)

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,362,819
Expenses
$3,259,197
Assets
$4,013,094
Liabilities
$2,533,216

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

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • TAMBRA PENDLETON (PRINCIPAL): $126,072 total reported compensation
  • JAWN MANNING (PRINCIPAL RESIDENT): $113,656 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To develop students into leaders through a community that fosters their agency, autonomy, and acceleration - providing a foundation for future independence and success.

What it reported doing in 2024

Believe schools is a public college and career preparatory high school dedicated to the achievement of students in the st. Louis area. The school will ensure all students graduate with an associate's degree or a career certification in a high-demand, skilled career alongside their high school diploma. This will be achieved through meaningful and purposeful community partnerships that will help elevate the student and the st. Louis community.

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 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.

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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 59
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 58
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 52.6%; rating input score 53
  • Program expense ratio: 70.1%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $20.71 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • 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: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 25.3%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.23; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.63; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 126.9% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 109.8% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 120% per year; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 52.6% of revenue deployed · 70.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $126K · 14 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $399K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 53/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 44/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 15/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 40/100.