Darien Study Center Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
364295675
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Darien, IL, USA
Phone
6305418769
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Higher Education Institutions
Affiliation
Christianity

Reported finances

Revenue
$574,988
Expenses
$701,258
Assets
$5,139,079
Liabilities
$42,377

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • John B Haley (President, Director)
  • Frederick A Smith (Vice President, Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • John B Haley (President, Director): $40,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

In cooperation with the Roman Catholic Prelature of Opus Dei, Darien Study Center fosters the search for holiness in the middle of the world, by means of ordinary work and all the other circumstances of daily life. See www.opusdei.org.

What it reported doing in 2024

Courses, conferences and classes in Roman Catholic doctrine, philosophy, theology, spiritual, human and ethical formation. Personal spiritual guidance. Youth camps and clubs, sports and cultural activities. Care for elderly and incapacitated persons. Operation and maintenance of residential facilities to carry out these activities, including a Catholic chapel used daily for Holy Mass and other practices of Catholic piety and worship.

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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 99
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 96.8%; rating input score 97
  • Fundraising efficiency: $798.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 97; 97th 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: 83.3%; rating input score 83; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -22%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.33; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.7%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.8% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.7% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -2.7% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 96.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 6 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $678K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $40K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 8/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 51/100.