Birch Grove Community School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
201816956
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Tofte, MN, USA
Phone
2186630170
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Charter Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,191,801
Expenses
$916,054
Assets
$767,307
Liabilities
$567,464

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • SARAH KNOTTSKI (VICE-CHAIRPERSON): $80,474 total reported compensation
  • DIANE BLANCHETTE (DIRECTOR/BUSINESS MANAGER): $70,771 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Birch grove community school will promote academic excellence, utilizing our unique natural setting, allowing students to reach their potential, preparing them to become socially and environmentally responsible, self-directed, life-long learners.

What it reported doing in 2024

Birch grove community school is organized for the purpose of operating a results oriented charter school pursuant to Minnesota statutes 124d.10.during the fiscal year ended june 30, 2024, the school had an average daily membership of 43 students in the kindergarten through fifth grade.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 80% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 59
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 52
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 59.9%; rating input score 60
  • Program expense ratio: 77.5%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: 80%; rating input score 80; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 23.1%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.84; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.74; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 16.5%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.9% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.5% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 59.9% of revenue deployed · 77.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 5 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $710K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $80K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2009 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 37/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 10/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 20/100.