Hernando County Education Foundation

Legal name: Hernando County Education Direct Support Organization Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
593031959
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2011
Location
Spring Hill, FL, US
Phone
(352) 797-7313
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Nonmonetary Support N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,943,271
Expenses
$1,580,218
Assets
$3,030,113
Liabilities
$5,227

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

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KANDICE CHRISTMAS (PRESIDENT)
  • DEBRA MYERS (PAST PRESIDENT)
  • TAMMY BRINKER (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • TAMMY BRINKER (CEO): $166,118 total reported compensation
  • DEBBYE WARRELL (TREASURER/SECRETARY): $117,588 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Creating partnerships that advance student achievement and promote excellence within Hernando County Public Education.

What it reported doing in 2024

See schedule otools 4 schools teacher supply storethe foundation operates a year-round teacher resource store providing free school supplies to educators serving more than 24 public schools in hernando county. The program supports approximately 1,600 teachers and benefits more than 21,000 students annually. The physical store is stocked through donated goods and contributed funds. By providing classroom materials at no cost, the program reduces out-of-pocket expenses for teachers and ensures students have access to essential instructional resources.operation cinderella boutiqueoperation cinderella provides formal attire at no cost to students from low-income families for school-sponsored events. During the year, the program distributed over 178 donated dresses and suits. All items are received through noncash contributions and offered free of charge, removing financial barriers to student participation in milestone school events.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 95% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 46% for direct work, and 54% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 62
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 74
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 43.9%; rating input score 44
  • Program expense ratio: 81.8%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $189.73 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 92; 92nd 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: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 46.3%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.92; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 12.2%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 15.6% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 22.2% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 15 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 43.9% of revenue deployed · 81.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 14 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $1.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $166K · 15 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 44/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.