Washington Latin Public Charter Schools
Legal name: Corporation of the Washington Latin School
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 202395640
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Washington, DC, US
- Phone
- (202) 223-1111
- Rating
- 84
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Education
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $32,378,114
- Expenses
- $28,154,299
- Assets
- $76,571,087
- Liabilities
- $48,422,313
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
23 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- KENNETH MERRITT (PRESIDENT)
- LAURIE BALLENGER (VICE PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- PETER ANDERSON (HEAD OF SCHOOL): $221,718 total reported compensation
- GEOVANNA IZURIETA (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $162,317 total reported compensation
- JAMES A KELLY (PRINCIPAL): $137,909 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Washington Latin Public Charter Schools have a classical mission to offer a liberal arts, college preparatory education to DC students in grades 5-12.
What it reported doing in 2024
Washington latin pcs offers a classical education for the modern world as a small network of public charter schools open to students who reside in the district of columbia. During the 2024-2025 school year, our enrollment was 746 students at our 2nd street campus (grades 5-12) and 384 students at the anna julia cooper campus (grades 5-8). The cooper campus opened in 2022 with grades 5 and 6, and we are adding one additional grade each year until we reach our full complement of grades 5-12 in the 2028-2029 school year.at latin, we aim for a diverse and representative student body and have enrolled students from each of the eight wards of Washington, dc, in every one of our 19 years. Any student in grades 5 through 12 who is eager to learn and willing to work toward an excellent education will find our program rewarding and will graduate prepared for college or career.our primary sources of support are local appropriations for public schools from the district of columbia and federal entitlement funding through the office of the state superintendent of education. In addition, we collect student activity fees and receive grants and donations from private foundations, corporations, and individuals.curriculum and instruction: inherent in our school's design is a purposeful tension between the ideals of classical education and the realities of the modern world. As a classical school, we align ourselves with the established wisdom of the ancients, particularly the cultures of greece and rome. At the same time, we strive to convey these legacies within an environment that reflects the best of contemporary life, including a commitment to diversity and a variety of pedagogical approaches.we employ both traditional methods - such as repetition and socratic dialogue - and contemporary innovations, including technology and cooperative learning. This balance between classical and modern is explored through a broad liberal arts curriculum centered on the pursuit of truth, beauty, and goodness. The liberal arts provide students with a multifaceted view of the world and prepare them to be thoughtful global citizens. We encourage students to question assumptions, broaden their perspectives, and develop confidence, empathy, and flexibility. Our goal is to promote the development of the autonomous self and support students in pursuing their fuller humanity.we have a stable and dedicated faculty who bring deep instructional expertise and passion for their subject areas to the classroom. We also maintain a commitment to small class sizes, allowing teachers to provide personalized attention to all students, including those with disabilities and language differences.highlights of Washington latin's accomplishments: including the 2024-2025 school year, Washington latin has been open for 19 years and has successfully met the requirements of our authorizer, the dc public charter school board, which renewed our 15-year charter in 2022. We are also accredited by cognia (2023-2029).in response to strong demand, we opened our second campus, the anna julia cooper campus, in august 2022 with 163 students in grades 5 and 6. In 2023-2024, we added 7th grade, and in 2024-2025, we added 8th grade. We will continue adding one grade each year until reaching full enrollment of approximately 740 students in grades 5-12.Washington latin purchased a permanent home for the cooper campus at 4301 harewood road in september 2022. Renovation and new construction will be completed in august 2025.in recent dc-wide standardized testing (parcc assessments administered each spring), Washington latin students scored at or near the top in both english language arts (ela) and mathematics. Our ela scores were the highest of any non-selective dcps or public charter school in the district.our first class graduated in 2012; the class of 2025 will be our 14th graduating class.our faculty retention is strong, particularly compared to other public charter schools in dc and nationally. Our
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 88% 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.
- 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 liabilities are high compared with assets.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 80
- Transparency & Controls: 79
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 65
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 78.7%; rating input score 79
- Program expense ratio: 91.2%; rating input score 91
- Fundraising efficiency: $13.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: 13%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.72; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.63; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3.6%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 9% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13.9% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 78.7% of revenue deployed · 91.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $25.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $222K · 23 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $8.5M reported
- Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
- 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 48/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 21/100.