Chesterton Academy of Milw Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
473602999
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2014
Location
Menomonee Falls, WI, USA
Phone
2622648660
Rating
89
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Secondary, High School
Affiliation
Christianity

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,092,893
Expenses
$1,860,851
Assets
$1,478,541
Liabilities
$42,236

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Kim Dax (President)
  • Theresa Jace (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Eric Demeuse (Headmaster): $85,555 total reported compensation
  • Anna Jace (Director of Development): $58,822 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

An education with a rigorous classical curriculum taught through the lens of the Catholic faith.

What it reported doing in 2024

Provides an integrated classical education rooted in the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and centered on the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. The school forms students in the intellect and will so that they may flourish in virtue and lead lives dedicated to the greater inspired by Saint Pope John Paul II, we take as our motto Cultura Vitae, the Culture of Life. We make it our mission to prepare our students to triumph over the materialism and despair that pervade our culture and to accept our Lords offer to have life and have it abundantly. Our classical curriculum combines a broad, liberal arts education with a strong emphasis on the development of Christian virtues and an appreciation of beauty.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 80% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
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

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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 52
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.8%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 93%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 23; 23rd 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: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.1%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.79; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.8%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 25.9% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 25.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 31.7% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.8% of revenue deployed · 93% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $86K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 23/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 38/100.