Independence Mission Schools
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 454720688
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2013–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Phone
- 6102005100
- Rating
- 80
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Primary, Elementary Schools
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $36,510,515
- Expenses
- $33,751,989
- Assets
- $57,585,952
- Liabilities
- $4,942,434
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
32 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- GIANNA D'ANGELO (PRESIDENT AND CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- GIANNA D'ANGELO (PRESIDENT AND CEO): $322,004 total reported compensation
- JILL VALUNAS (CHIEF OF SCHOOLS): $236,959 total reported compensation
- ELIZABETH ALFONSI (CHIEF OF STAFF): $198,394 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Independence mission schools manages a network of catholic elementary schools through a central office location which provides support to all of the schools. The mission of ims is to provide sustainable, affordable, high-quality catholic education to nearly 4,000 children of all faiths in underserved urban neighborhoods through a new model of governance, funding, and accountability for the member schools.
What it reported doing in 2024
Independence missions schools fiercely believes in thelife-changingimpact of catholic school education. The sy24-25 will mark the 13th year for ims as an independent nonprofit operating 14 philadelphia-area neighborhood catholic schools committed to studentachievement and growth. By creating high-achieving, safe and loving learning environments, ims continues to outperform national and high-poverty learning growth statisticsin both english language arts and math. We continue to track toward thegoals as outlined in the strategic plan. We prepareour studentsfor success in high school, college, and life.donors continue to show their support as we enter the final 6 months of the capital campaign in support of the strategic plan.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 74% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 96% 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 82
- Transparency & Controls: 75
- Accountability: 83
- Sustainability: 62
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 82.2%; rating input score 82
- Program expense ratio: 88.9%; rating input score 89
- Fundraising efficiency: $20.08 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- 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: 7.6%; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.71; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.09; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3.2%; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 15.2% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 82.2% of revenue deployed · 88.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 18 of 21 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $30M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $322K · 32 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $277K reported
- Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
- Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 57/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 56/100.