Certell Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 461888092
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2015–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2014
- Location
- Huntington, WV, USA
- Phone
- 3178701050
- Rating
- 80
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- International Relief
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $2,301,110
- Expenses
- $3,179,031
- Assets
- $600,076
- Liabilities
- $119,382
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
9 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- FREDERIC FRANSEN THRU 63025 (CHAIRMAN / FORMER CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- FREDERIC FRANSEN THRU 63025 (CHAIRMAN / FORMER CEO): $214,060 total reported compensation
- LISA ROBERTS THRU 6625 (CDO): $204,876 total reported compensation
- JULIE SMITHERMAN THRU 4425 (VP OF PROGRAMS): $127,684 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 engage today's tech savvy students using meaningful content with which they can connect. Our course materials and technology are designed to equip each student to think independently, develop lifelong principles thoughtfully, and contribute in their community course materials and technology are designed to equip each student to think independently, develop lifelong principles thoughtfully, and contribute in their community responsibly. Digitally delivered, our classroom content increases students' access to quality learning experiences and empowers teachers in any environment.
What it reported doing in 2024
Poptential: poptential is a high school curriculum created by certell that integrates pop culture and multimedia storytelling into subjects like economics, history, civics, and financial literacy. Aligned with state standards, it engages students by making complex topics more relatable through videos, music, and other cultural references, fostering critical thinking and real-world connections.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 71% for direct work, and 29% for grants.
- 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: 85
- Transparency & Controls: 79
- Accountability: 86
- Sustainability: 9
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 81.8%; rating input score 82
- Fundraising efficiency: $4.93 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 17; 17th 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: 83.3%; rating input score 83; 16th 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: -38.2%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.19; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.2; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 21%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 13.9% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 12.2% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 12.7% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 81.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 5 of 6 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $2.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $214K · 9 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $123K reported
- Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 17/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 5/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 44/100.
- High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.