Lashon Academy

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
452325976
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2013
Location
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Phone
8185144566
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12

Reported finances

Revenue
$14,039,738
Expenses
$11,624,137
Assets
$34,624,094
Liabilities
$12,005,079

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOSE PAZ DO (PRESIDENT)
  • JESSICA SHAHAM (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • JOSH STOCK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOSH STOCK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $186,098 total reported compensation
  • SARA GARCIA (DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION): $161,027 total reported compensation
  • MARIA GENNARO (DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS & OPERATIONS): $155,512 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 prepare culturally diverse k-8 grade students to be self-directed learners andresponsible global citizens, by fostering academic excellence and utilizing research-based instructionalapproaches in a multilingual and service learning integrated environment.

What it reported doing in 2024

Operation of two public charter schools serving students in grades transitional kindergarten (tk) to eighth. The curriculum not only encourages academic achievement but also hones critical thinking and problem-solving skills, ensuring students are well-equipped for a rapidly changing world. With a rich multicultural environment, we celebrate diversity and instill intercultural understanding through our multilingual approach. Guided by research-based instructional methods, our educators create engaging learning experiences tailored to different learning styles. Beyond the classroom, our students actively contribute to their communities through service learning, fostering empathy and social responsibility.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 99% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 65
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 68
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 68%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 82.1%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 17.2%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.98; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.35; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.8% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 19.3% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 28.6% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 68% of revenue deployed · 82.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $186K · 11 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $630K reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 34/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 41/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.