Desert Sky Community School Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 203457052
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Tucson, AZ, USA
- Phone
- 5207453888
- Rating
- 74
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Charter Schools
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $521,202
- Expenses
- $534,718
- Assets
- $583,937
- Liabilities
- $115,449
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
5 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- CATHY REX (PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- ZORAIDA GONZALEZ (EX OFFICIO O): $45,000 total reported compensation
- SHELLY ADRIAN (CHARTER HOLD): $16,720 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The mission of the not-for-profit desert sky community school is to support and provide universal access to learning guided by the core principles of public waldorf education. Dscs educates and inspires children to think, feel, and act with depth, imagination, and purpose. We encourage community engagement in the growth and development of the school.
What it reported doing in 2024
Provided educational services to children in kindergarten through 5th grade in tucson Arizona. The school has a student population of approximately 35 students.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 85% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- 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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 68
- Transparency & Controls: 90
- Accountability: 65
- Sustainability: 34
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 76.5%; rating input score 77
- Program expense ratio: 74.6%; rating input score 75
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
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: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 14th 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: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Fail
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -2.6%; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.09; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.2; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 11.5%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 1.5% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 1.7% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 76.5% of revenue deployed · 74.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 2 of 3 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $399K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $45K · 5 people listed
- Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 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.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 29/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 45/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 32/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 32/100.