National School Public Relations Association
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 526060603
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Derwood, MD, USA
- Phone
- 3015190496
- Rating
- 77
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Professional Societies, Associations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,217,329
- Expenses
- $3,387,418
- Assets
- $2,578,513
- Liabilities
- $882,680
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
18 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Barbara Hunter (Executive Director)
- Erica Chandler (President-Elect)
- Trent Allen (Immediate Past President)
- Heidi Vega (President)
Highest reported compensation
- Barbara Hunter (Executive Director): $247,056 total reported compensation
- Mellissa Braham (Associate Director): $168,995 total reported compensation
- Tommy Jones (Senior Manager): $111,129 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
NSPRA advances public education by building understanding and empowering professionals to communicate strategically, earn trust and cultivate relationships.
What it reported doing in 2024
National Awards Programs: Each year, NSPRA honors those whose professional practice and leadership have had a positive, lasting impact on schools and the school PR community through Individual Recognition Awards. NSPRA also honors excellent work through the National School Communication Awards contests: Gold Medallion Awards, Golden Achievement Awards, Publications and Digital Media Awards. With the Mark of Distinction, NSPRA recognizes exemplary chapters (affiliates) for outstanding efforts to support the professional development of their members and NSPRA.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 87% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program 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
SUPPORTED - 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: 64
- Transparency & Controls: 84
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 22
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 72.8%; rating input score 73
- Program expense ratio: 70.3%; rating input score 70
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- 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: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: -5.3%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.76; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.34; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 22%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 9.9% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 10.1% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 72.8% of revenue deployed · 70.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $247K · 18 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 32 of 33 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 20/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 28/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.