Garden School Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
111631783
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Jackson Heights, NY, USA
Phone
7183356363
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Primary, Elementary Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$13,271,169
Expenses
$12,970,137
Assets
$11,035,076
Liabilities
$6,052,904

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

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MICHAEL RAKOSI (PRESIDENT)
  • DONALD BERHANG (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • ARTHUR GRUEN (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHRISTOPHER HERMAN (HEAD OF SCHOOL): $435,700 total reported compensation
  • WILLIAM VOGEL (LOWER DIVISION HEAD): $244,199 total reported compensation
  • MARY MAISANO (CFO THROUGH 12/31/24): $188,445 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Garden school, in the independent tradition, affirms the primacy of learning. We empower every student in our educationally diverse community to responsibly meet the challenges of everyday life by promoting academic achievement, personal development and social involvement. We further believe that by recognizing each student's individual identity, garden school fosters the self-worth necessary to succeed.

What it reported doing in 2024

Instructional - see schedule ogarden school is a nursery through twelfth grade independent school with a rigorous academic curriculum and an enrollment of approximately 250 students. All children are uniquely talented and have their own learning styles, so we combine time-tested teaching methods with creative approaches to reach out to all of our learners through a flexible teaching philosophy that is only possible with small class sizes. Our students evolve into readers, writers, and critical thinkers. They gain a deep understanding in math and the sciences. They become speakers of a second (and sometimes even a third) language. They acquire sophisticated eyes and ears for the arts, and they learn the value of helping others and taking care of themselves, as well as the balance required for both.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 95% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 79% for direct work, and 21% for grants.

The verdict

STRONG - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 95
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 68.3%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 69.4%; rating input score 69
  • Fundraising efficiency: $41.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.3%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.85; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.55; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 68.3% of revenue deployed · 69.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 16 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $436K · 22 people listed · 6 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $123K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 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.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 30/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 17/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.