Memphis University School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
620545618
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Memphis, TN, USA
Phone
9012601300
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Secondary, High School

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$35,299,588
Expenses
$22,856,945
Assets
$106,872,973
Liabilities
$18,984,619

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

Leadership & pay

32 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • PETER D SANDERS (Headmaster): $372,261 total reported compensation
  • RANKIN FOWLKES (Dir of Business Operations): $205,921 total reported compensation
  • McKee Humphreys (Assoc. Headmaster, Head Lower School): $181,815 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Memphis university school is a college-preparatory school dedicated to academic excellence, cultivation of service and leadership, and the development of well-rounded young men of strong moral character, consistent with the school's christian tradition.

What it reported doing in 2024

Financial aid for students in grades 7-12 approximately 189 students

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 83% 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 most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 59
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 79
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 50.6%; rating input score 51
  • Program expense ratio: 75%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $14.54 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

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: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • 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: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 35.2%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.68; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.5%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.3% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 50.6% of revenue deployed · 75% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 24 of 24 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $17.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $372K · 32 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2M reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 51/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 49/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.