League School for Autism Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
046139988
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Walpole, MA, USA
Phone
5088503900
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$20,289,896
Expenses
$19,524,755
Assets
$22,973,135
Liabilities
$10,013,327

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DAVID FOSTER (DIRECTOR/PRESIDENT)
  • LAWRENCE E SAUER (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • LAWRENCE E SAUER (CEO): $329,431 total reported compensation
  • CHERYL WHITE (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $197,484 total reported compensation
  • ISMAEL DASILVA (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $194,575 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

League school for autism is dedicated to excellence in autism education and individual development. We employ a unique comprehensive approach emphasizing academic, social, emotional, communication, and regulation skills to maximize positive outcomes for the individuals we serve and their families.

What it reported doing in 2024

Day program: league school is internationally known for its innovative, integrated and individualized program for children and young adults, ages 3 to 22, with autism spectrum disorder. To achieve our far-reaching mission, the school takes a comprehensive developmental approach, encompassing every aspect of a student's life: social, emotional, academic and behavioral. League school is the first private school in Massachusetts and one of only a few in new england to adopt the scerts model. With the scerts model, we support persons with autism by helping them to achieve "authentic progress" which is defined as the ability to learn and spontaneously apply functional and relevant skills in a variety of settings and with a variety of partners. By observing students at different times and in different settings, we are capable of a broader understanding of behaviors and can establish more precise goals and objectives.the school offers four distinct programs designed to meet the varying needs and abilities of our diverse student population. Those programs are: foundations, for early childhood and elementary-aged students between the ages of 3-12; content teaching/life skills, for students ages 12-17; transitions, educates students between the ages of 16 -22; pathfinders, which educates elementary, middle school, high school, and post-high school students with high-functioning autism and related social communication challenges.each program includes: content area academics (reading, math, science and social studies); a full array of services (social pragmatics, communications, sensory integration, occupational therapy and behavior therapy); adapted physical education, art, music, culinary arts and daily living skills along with community field trips. Beginning at age 14, our students participate in vocational training to acquire job skills needed for when they leave as adults.league school currently serves more than 100 students from more than 55 communities in Massachusetts. Our qualified and committed staff of 207 full and part time employees use a curriculum based on the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks/common core standards. Classroom instruction is provided with accommodations as outlined in each student ieps. Our teachers and teaching assistants are supported by board certified behavioral analysts, clinicians, occupational therapists, speech and language pathologists, and physical therapists.

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

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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 80
  • Transparency & Controls: 89
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 85.1%; rating input score 85
  • Program expense ratio: 89.1%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.13 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • 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: 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: 9 of 9 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: 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: 3.8%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.18; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.44; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.6%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.9% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 85.1% of revenue deployed · 89.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $17.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $329K · 18 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 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.
  • 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: Fundraising efficiency scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 49/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 32/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 34/100.