Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship

What it reported doing in 2024

Students in nfte programs learn how to develop a business plan and how to market their business concept. Through the process of creating their own business idea, nfte students build business and academic skills, are introduced to new career paths, and learn about a wide range of jobs and occupations. They also develop their entrepreneurial mindset. Nfte students learn to think and act like entrepreneurs, demonstrating skills such as initiative and self-reliance, flexibility and adaptability, critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration, creativity and innovation, opportunity recognition, and future orientation. The entrepreneurial mindset, together with the skills nfte teaches, prepares youth for college and career success. Nfte partners with schools, community groups, and youth development organizations to bring entrepreneurship education to diverse learners. Our work focuses primarily on middle and high school students in under-resourced communities. We target public school districts with free and reduced lunch (frl) eligibility rates of 50% or more, and most of our partner schools have frl rates of 70-80%. The nfte model leverages classroom teachers to deliver the nfte curriculum. The benefit to nfte is that teachers are paid by their respective school districts. The challenge for the organization's contributors and assessors is recognizing the economic value of those teachers is excluded, in tax reporting, from the measurement of expenditures related to program efforts. The teachers are essential to meeting the organization's mission, thus the economic value must be factored into any assessment of the organization to have a true comparison with other organizations. Note - consistent with IRS form 990 instructions, part iii, line 4a, expenses and revenue do not include donated services of 131,615 classroom hours that the organization taught by volunteer teachers having an estimated value of $6,677,616.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 93.8%; rating input score 94
• Program expense ratio: 69.4%; rating input score 69
• Fundraising efficiency: $3.68 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
  • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
  • Requires narrative reports: Fail
  • Conducts field audits: Fail
  • May suspend future funding: Fail
  • Requires financial reports: Pass
  • Conducts site visits: Fail
  • Requires grant agreements: Fail
  • May require repayment: Fail
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • 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: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -34.8%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.88; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.35; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 17.3%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -2.2% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -4.6% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -2.1% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings