Lowcountry Montessori School
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 463469661
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2014–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2013
- Location
- Beaufort, SC, USA
- Phone
- 8433220577
- Rating
- 81
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Primary, Elementary Schools
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $5,256,984
- Expenses
- $5,571,510
- Assets
- $13,762,158
- Liabilities
- $14,445,243
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
11 people listed
Highest reported compensation
- AMY HORN (EXEC DIRECTOR (FORMER)): $99,043 total reported compensation
- SARAH FOX (EXEC DIRECTOR): $84,611 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 mission of lowcountry montessori school is to provide an authentic montessori education building a foundation for lifelong learning.
What it reported doing in 2024
See schedule olowcountry montessori school implements an authentic montessori environment for primary through high school. We use multi-aged classrooms, montessori trained guides, classrooms stocked with montessori materials, to meet children where they are in the curriculum. If a child is in need for remediation or advanced lessons, the curriculum is set up to meet the child where they are.lowcountry montessori school believes in following the child. If children have a carefully prepared environment, with purposeful materials and a trained guide, they often are interested in the environment and intrinsically motivated to learn. Lowcountry montessori school's curriculum also has a peace curriculum or conflict resolution component. This is something that is done at all levels. Because of this curriculum, we see students begin to resolve conflict at an early age.lowcountry montessori school's secondary program curriculum has a fine art focus with an emphasis on environmental sciences and practical life skills. Students are taught culinary skills, metal working, textiles, photography, drawing, music, dance as well as other related arts. We also offer classes skills such as horticulture, speech and debate, self and social responsibility and in their senior year, students are expected to do a thesis on a topic of choice.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 88% 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
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 73
- Transparency & Controls: 90
- Accountability: 90
- Sustainability: 37
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 84.4%; rating input score 84
- Program expense ratio: 79.6%; rating input score 80
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Fail
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -6%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.47; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.05; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3.3%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 8.7% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 11.9% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 84.4% of revenue deployed · 79.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $99K · 11 people listed
- Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 4/100.