Columbus Early Learning Centers
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 314379619
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Columbus, OH, USA
- Phone
- 6142535525
- Rating
- 87
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $7,407,292
- Expenses
- $5,994,011
- Assets
- $8,987,498
- Liabilities
- $1,971,320
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
19 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JESSICA CANO (BOARD PRESIDENT)
- GEORGINA GINN (CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- GEORGINA GINN (CEO): $146,539 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Columbus early learning centers (celc) has over 130 years of history providing high quality, affordable early learning and childcare in central Ohio. This rich history places celc amongst the oldest early childcare programs in the country. Of the over 300 children that are served each year, nearly 75% live below 150% of the federal poverty level. In addition, 85% come from a single parent headed household and 95% receive public assistance or a celc scholarship to help make early childhood education and childcare accessible and affordable. Celc prides itself on serving as many children from the community as we can, ensuring children graduate on to kindergarten prepared both academically and socially.
What it reported doing in 2024
Columbus early learning centers (celc) has been providing high-quality early learning and affordable care to our city's children since 1887. Celc's services make it possible for parents to work or attend school, while children are cared for in education-focused classrooms staffed by highly qualified early childhood teachers.children served are: 18% white, 61% black, 14% multi-racial, 6% hispanic. (72% identify as persons of color). Children enrolled for at least 90 days are assessed using teaching strategies gold. Teachers enter data into the system after conducting observations, and individual results are compared to widely held expectations (whe) in six different domains, such as social-emotional development, cognitive ability, and literacy skills. Success is defined as the child meeting or exceeding whe in at least four of six domains. Our goals annually are that more than 80% of our children are meeting or exceeding the whe. In addition, 95% of cel''s graduating students demonstrate kindergarten-readiness compared to just 35.4% statewide. In 2024, volunteers contributed $ 34,737.58 in economic value.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- 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: 77
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 65
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 72.9%; rating input score 73
- Program expense ratio: 89.5%; rating input score 89
- Fundraising efficiency: $20.04 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 59; 59th 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: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 19.1%; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.5; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.4%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 6.2% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 72.9% of revenue deployed · 89.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $5.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $147K · 19 people listed
- Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 9 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 59/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 52/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 42/100.