Literacy Matters Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
812943386
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2020
Forms available
Form 990 2020
Location
Minneapolis, MN, USA
Phone
5029667323
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Educational Services and Schools - Other

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$815,376
Expenses
$1,201,012
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DEB MALLIN (FOUNDER, CO-CHAIR AND CEO)

People named in this filing

  • DEB MALLIN (FOUNDER, CO-CHAIR AND CEO)
  • BRUCE LANGER (BOARD TREASURER)
  • JOHN THOMAS (BOARD MEMBER)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The literacy matters foundation is a team of teachers, content experts, technology gurus, and strategists who help students master literacy. By building educational software based on proven pedagogic techniques, and integrating it into the classroom, we bring personalized reading and writing instruction to empower emerging readers.

What it reported doing in 2020

Mighty doodle: literacy matters has a non-exclusive licensed & co-developed learning software (mighty doodle) that brings together artificial intelligence and research-based curriculum. Following the orton-gillingham instructional approach. The learning program provides engaging, child-friendly literacy instruction, while assessing a student's advancement in real time. By understanding students' individual differences and progress, teachers can personalize instruction, which improves outcome. Mighty doodle was implemented in four schools and one summer school location over the year.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 78% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 63
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 11
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.2%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 52.9%; rating input score 53
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1.97 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -47.3%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -21.7% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -65.8% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.2% of revenue deployed · 52.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $636K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 6 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $107K reported
  • Consistency: 22 of 23 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2018 to 2020
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 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: Program expense ratio scored 53/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 4/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.