Excellence in Education

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
680105303
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Truckee, CA, USA
Phone
5305507984
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$601,225
Expenses
$646,377
Assets
$3,009,418
Liabilities
$10,027

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

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MEGAN EVANS (President)
  • KIRSTEN PEKAREK (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • LAURA BROWN (ED til Nov '24): $81,506 total reported compensation
  • Amy Macosko (Interim ED): $20,378 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 enhance public education within the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District to strengthen the learning experience for students.

What it reported doing in 2024

During the year, the Foundation provided $422,304 in grants, resources, and educator awards to support enhanced learning across the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District. This included 60 classroom grants totaling $190,748 and targeted investments in math, science, STEAM, environmental science, and literacy. Additional funding supported arts education, Career and Technical Education, experiential history programs, social-emotional learning, and accessibility resources.To advance TTUSDs outdoor education initiative, we awarded $102,300 for bunk beds and mattresses for the new TAHOE Lab and Outdoor School. We also funded $32,000 for CTE field trips in Culinary Arts, Sports Medicine, Emergency Response, and Engineering. The Foundation continued its multiyear commitment to Aim High and granted $36,000 to Sierra Watershed Education Partnerships for science programming and stewardship events.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 81% of its reported program spending out as grants.

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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 83
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 45
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 80.8%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.57 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 7; 7th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -7.5%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.66; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 15.8%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.1% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1.9% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 80.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $522K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $82K · 24 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 filed related-organization links
  • 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: Fundraising efficiency scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 20/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.