Dakshana Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
202861633
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-PF 2016
Location
West Lake Hills, TX, USA
Phone
5129997110
Rating
42
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Scholarships, Student Financial Aid Services, Awards

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,877,026
Expenses
$632,550
Assets
$24,200,653
Liabilities
$52,708

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

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • MONSOON PABRAI (Director): $25,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The Foundation is a philanthropic foundation focused on alleviating poverty. It is focused on providing world-class educational opportunities to economically and socially disadvantaged gifted children from impoverished rural backgrounds in India.

What it reported doing in 2025

Dakshanas specific purpose is to identify destitute but intellectually gifted orphans and underprivileged children in India. The Foundation will build residential school(s) in India and sending these gifted orphans to these schools. Dakshana will pay for all tuition and living expenses through grade 12 for all such selected Dakshana scholars.The Foundation will also form a partnership with leading student loan lenders. Afterhigh school, Dakshana will, if required, co-sign student loans for all Dakshana scholars to attend any accredited university on a combination of scholarships and loans.The Foundation hopes to build a very deep relationship with the Dakshana scholarsthroughout their entire lives. Dakshana will impose no legal obligation on the scholars but clearly outline a moral obligation to give back 10% of lifetime earnings to the Foundation so that more scholars can be supported by the Foundation. The Foundations vision is that the scholars of today will eventually sponsor a scholar in the future. This will ultimately result in production of more Dakshana scholars every year.In India, every year, less than 2,000 gifted scholars graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, one of the leading schools in India. But these small numbers have created a sizable impact on the countrys economy. Starting with one scholar in 2006, Dakshana envisions supporting hundreds of new scholars each year after two or three decades with the source of funding eventually coming from the beneficiaries of yesterday.The Foundation will encourage donors to support a specific scholar for a year or two or through the entire program. This will provide an opportunity for the donor to see the impact of their donations on an orphans life. Under Dakshanas supervision, such donors can foster a nurturing parent-like relationship with the scholar.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 95% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and revenue comfortably covers expenses. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 40
  • Transparency & Controls: 61
  • Accountability: 12
  • Sustainability: 93
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 15.5%; rating input score 15
  • Program expense ratio: 71.2%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $32.07 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 23rd 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: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 83.7%; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 38.26; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -17.5% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -19.5% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 15.5% of revenue deployed · 71.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 3 board members independent · 2 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $450K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $25K · 3 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 28 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2017 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 15/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.