College Affordable Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
883690739
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2022
Location
Needham, MA, USA
Phone
7813431941
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Student Services, Organizations of Students

Reported finances

Revenue
$732,847
Expenses
$695,339
Assets
$112,562
Liabilities
$72,797

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BRIAN GARDINER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CLERK)

Highest reported compensation

  • BRIAN GARDINER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CLERK): $202,748 total reported compensation
  • LYNETTE O'LEARY (DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL AID): $148,389 total reported compensation
  • GREGG COHEN (CHAIR & DIRECTOR): $1,530 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

College affordable is a non profit organization built to help families reduce the cost of college, minimize debt and increase higher education choices.

What it reported doing in 2025

In the united states, the exorbitant cost of college and the complex financial aid process hinders access to higher education and can lead to unsustainable student loans for students that do not have the means to navigate this process. College affordable, inc.'s mission is to reduce those barriers, particularly among student populations that possess the highest financial need and where the impact is greatest. In the future, college affordable, inc. Will raise donations from individuals, corporations, and grants and then will spend 70 - 80 percent of its time and resources to provide educational services as a free resource for students and their families and provide personalized support to students with the greatest need to navigate the financial aid process, which is in line with the mission of the organization. We will partner with schools and non-profit organizations to provide online webinars on timely topics such as completing the financial aid applications (fafsa), student loan options, understanding financial aid awards, and financial literacy education for students. Families, high school guidance counselors, and non-profit partners may call or email for answers to financial aid questions. Personalized support with completing financial aid or student loan applications may be arranged with a partner school or nonprofit organization for students identified as qualifying based on adverse personal circumstances.college affordable, inc. Intends to raise money from philanthropists and from industry adjacent services providers. Expenses will be for fundraising and administrative expenses as well as execution of our programs to provide education and support to schools, non-profit organizations and families. College affordable inc. Intends to maximize the use of qualified volunteers in the delivery of the support and education provided. At the current time and in the initial stages all support being provided is on a volunteer basis, and no compensation is being paid at this time and during the startup phase of the organization.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 79% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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 - 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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 25
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 71.2%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 75%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 21; 21st 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: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • 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: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 5.1%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.16; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.65; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 50.7%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 54.3% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 66.9% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 49.6% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 71.2% of revenue deployed · 75% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 8 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $522K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $203K · 10 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2023 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 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.
  • 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 21/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 9/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 45/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 9/100.