Northwest Montessori School
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 910832018
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Seattle, WA, USA
- Phone
- 2065244244
- Rating
- 78
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Kindergarten, Preschool, Nursery School, Early Admissions
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,519,187
- Expenses
- $3,474,112
- Assets
- $3,960,047
- Liabilities
- $2,485,571
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Janine Edgin (President)
- Dorothy Chambless (Vice President)
Highest reported compensation
- Elizabeth Truman (Director): $129,525 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To provide an individualized learning environment, based on the principles of Dr. Maria Montessori, that is designed to help students become independent, life-long learners who are academically grounded and socially confident about their place in the world.
What it reported doing in 2024
Northwest Montessori School was founded in 1965. Currently, we have 181 students between the ages of 2 1/2 and 12 years old. Northwest Montessori School is based on the Montessori method of education and is recognized by the Association Montessori Internationale. We have three locations in the Seattle area. All of our preschool classrooms maintain a one to ten teacher ratio. Our elementary program is approved by the superintendent of public education for Washington State. At its core, the Montessori philosophy respects children as they are and creates carefully prepared classroom environments that foster the fulfillment of each child's highest potential. Montessori teachers use the dynamic educational approach to carefully observe and best meet the evolving developmental needs of each student, the three year age span in each classroom also allows children to progress at their own intellectual pace, to learn individually and together, and to grow into social and emotional maturity naturally. The average teacher longevity is ten years. All of our teachers have a diploma award from the Association of Montessori Internationale.Northwest Montessori School offers the Spanish language to all students, preschool to 6th grade.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 93% 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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 75
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 68
- Sustainability: 40
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 83.7%; rating input score 84
- Program expense ratio: 84.8%; rating input score 85
- 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: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 1.3%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.14; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.63; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3.7%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 83.7% of revenue deployed · 84.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 6 of 7 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $130K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- 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.
- Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 39/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 41/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 16/100.