Leslie Shankman School Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363900221
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Chicago, IL, USA
Phone
7734202883
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Reported finances

Revenue
$18,838,032
Expenses
$19,410,427
Assets
$23,676,310
Liabilities
$7,792,644

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

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DIANA KON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SSOS)
  • WALTER CRNICH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HPDS)

Highest reported compensation

  • WALTER CRNICH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HPDS): $282,986 total reported compensation
  • DIANA KON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SSOS): $273,917 total reported compensation
  • ABBY SIMON (EXEC. DIRECTOR AND CFO, LSSC): $252,125 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The organization operates private special education schools, including a day school for children with learning disabilities with average to high iqs. The organization also operates a day school for children with psychiatric and emotional disorders.

What it reported doing in 2024

Ssos | the organization operates the sonia shankman orthogenic school, a day school for students with profound emotional issues. It serves students from kindergarten through twelfth grade. A large majority of students graduate to college, back to their home schools or to less restrictive environments. Therapeutic services are provided for students attending the sonia shankman orthogenic school. The residential program was closed in fy 2021, in order to triple the size of the day program over the next 4 years to a maximum of 130 students. The day school also includes a transitional program.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 93% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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: 84
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.7%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 85.5%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $4.44 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • 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: Yes; rating input score 100

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%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.22; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.33; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8%; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.2% per year; rating input score 100; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -6.2% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 88.7% of revenue deployed · 85.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $16.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $283K · 20 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $793K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 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.
  • 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 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 21/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 30/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 43/100.