Buckley Country Day School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
111661352
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Roslyn, NY, USA
Phone
5166271910
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Primary, Elementary Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$17,529,663
Expenses
$17,386,957
Assets
$29,636,581
Liabilities
$4,031,619

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

Leadership & pay

27 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • JEAN-MARC JUHEL (HEAD OF SCHOOL): $706,264 total reported compensation
  • COLLEEN AHERN FORTUNA (DIR. OF ADMISSIONS): $218,090 total reported compensation
  • ELIZABETH M LYONS (HEAD OF LOWER SCHOOL): $192,215 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 school's mission is grounded in the belief expressed by b. Lord buckley that opening the eyes and awakening the mind is the essence of education. Guided by that mission for almost a century, buckley has purposely focused on developing a rigorous curriculum and teaching skills required for the students' future, while remaining committed to a liberal arts education dedicated to nurturing the whole child and fostering joy in lifelong learning.

What it reported doing in 2024

The school is a co-educational independent day school serving 330 children in grades pre nursery through eight. The school is designed as a rigorous learning institution to prepare students for entry into selective secondary schools.upper school - provided a full academic year to 129 students in grades 5-8 including 171 class instruction days.lower school - provided a full academic year to 201 students in early childhood and grades k-4 including 171 class instruction days.summer camp - provided a day camp for children aged 2-15 years including 39 days of operation.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 92% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 83% 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

STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 85
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.5%; rating input score 79
  • Program expense ratio: 81.2%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.15 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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; 66th 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: 0.8%; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.7; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.14; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.4% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.8% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.8% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.5% of revenue deployed · 81.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $14.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $706K · 27 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2M reported
  • Consistency: 39 of 40 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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 7/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 37/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 56/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 17/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.