Constellation Learning Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
851463621
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Phone
9133022948
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Student Services, Organizations of Students

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,631,451
Expenses
$1,162,624
Assets
$1,327,416
Liabilities
$-130

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

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Sarah Hofstra (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Sarah Hofstra (President): $150,000 total reported compensation
  • Christopher Mullis (Vice PresidentSecretary): $150,000 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 develop and deliver a trusted source of online and blended K-12 courses; to train and support faculty in delivering these resources.

What it reported doing in 2024

Support a collective of progressive school educators dedicated to serving K-12 school communities through online and blended student courses; providing faculty support; conduct applied research into solutions for student learning challenges; and expanding lessons learned in supporting independent schools into the larger network of other student-learning settings (public, charter, home) to meet diversity, equity and inclusion goals.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 99% 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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 60
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 53
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 60%; rating input score 60
  • Program expense ratio: 79%; rating input score 79
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 28.7%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.14; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: Limited

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.9% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 22.2% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 36.5% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 60% of revenue deployed · 79% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $918K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $150K · 3 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes executive pay
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.