Merrick Academy Queens Public Charter School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
134119996
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Springfield Gardens, NY, USA
Phone
7184793753
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Higher Education Institutions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$18,024,604
Expenses
$18,773,827
Assets
$5,450,072
Liabilities
$5,327,808

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ADRIAN MANUEL (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • ADRIAN MANUEL (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $316,251 total reported compensation
  • JAMIE WHITE (CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER): $197,229 total reported compensation
  • MICHELLE HARRISON (DIRECTOR OF STEAM): $195,227 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Merrick academy-queens public charter school is a charter school for children located in queens, New York. It educates children on a completely nondiscriminatory and secular basis. The founders and supporters of the school believe that access to a public education of high quality for all children is the foremost issue.

What it reported doing in 2024

The school provides a full range of special education services. During the fiscal year, the school operated classes for approximately 134 special education students in grades k-6.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 93% of the money available for current operations came from other operating 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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 15
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87.5%; rating input score 88
  • Program expense ratio: 84%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: -4.2%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.29; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.98; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.5%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.3% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 87.5% of revenue deployed · 84% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $15.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $316K · 13 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $161K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors 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
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 27/100.