Explore & Discover A Reggio Emilia Infant & Toddle

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
822401421
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Wheat Ridge, CO, USA
Phone
7208556818
Rating
31
Verdict
REVIEW
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Child Day Care

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$649,764
Expenses
$706,284
Assets
$228,050
Liabilities
$14,345

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Becca Birkeland (Assistant Director): $42,762 total reported compensation
  • Nandi Fambro Schloesser (Director): $22,869 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 Explore and Discover is to provide infants and toddlers with a nurturing and engaging environment that promotes whole-child learning and development.

What it reported doing in 2024

Explore and Discover (E&D) is a Reggio Emilia-based daycare for children ages six weeks to 3 years. At E&D, children explore the world around them through play, and our teachers and parents participate as partners every day. E&D operates as a cooperative and families participate monthly in activities that support the program as well as attend parent meetings, parent-education seminars and special events. The programs curriculum is modeled after the Reggio Emilia Approach to the Education of Young Children, which encourages children to actively explore their environment and express themselves through the use of materials all within a rich social setting. Our classrooms feature low teacher-to-child ratios and are led by caring and knowledgeable early childhood education professionals. E&D is proud to offer scheduling flexibility and a strong sense of community.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 90% 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.

The verdict

REVIEW - The filed numbers largely add up and revenue has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 9
  • Transparency & Controls: 66
  • Accountability: 16
  • Sustainability: 23
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 10.2%; rating input score 10
  • Program expense ratio: 9.5%; rating input score 9
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1.4 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -8.7%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.32; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.3%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -32.9% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.7% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 10.2% of revenue deployed · 9.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 9 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $67K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $43K · 8 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes executive pay
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2018 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 10/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 9/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 4/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 15/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 49/100.