Overbrook School for the Blind

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
231445631
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Phone
2158770313
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$36,376,128
Expenses
$31,909,806
Assets
$262,732,730
Liabilities
$4,382,238

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

Leadership & pay

26 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LYLE T SINE (PRESIDENT)
  • SIDNEY ROSENBLATT (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • COLLEEN CHRISTIAN (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • EDWARD MCGINN JR (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • TODD REEVES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • TODD REEVES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $366,635 total reported compensation
  • BETH RAMELLA (SUPERINTENDENT): $232,236 total reported compensation
  • SHEENA LAWRENCE (CFO (PRESENT)): $215,856 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Overbrook School for the Blind empowers individuals who are blind, visually impaired, or deafblind to achieve their fullest potential through education, support, and advocacy.

What it reported doing in 2024

Operation of early intervention, pre-vocational and habilitation, and work experience programs for students who are visually impaired. The early intervention program provides services to children from birth to age five and their families. The programs occur in the child's home, day care center or on location at the school for children who require additional services. The goals of the program are to empower families with the knowledge and resources needed to be advocates for their children, to help the children learn to explore their environments through play and functional activities and to help the children learn to be as independent as possible. The school-to-work program provides intensive instruction for 19-21 year olds. Students receive instruction in communication skills, social skills, daily living, vocational or work experience skills, leisure skills and assistive technology. The work experience program prepares students through classroom lessons and vocational experiences at the school and at area businesses for the adult work world they will enter after graduation. The emphasis is on t.e.c.h., training, employment, careers and habilitation. The mission of the program is "to create a comprehensive and dynamic vocational atmosphere which prepares each student to capably handle present and future work assignments plus develop the social behaviors required for the adult world vocational program and employment environments." the whitehall independent living program is also a component of services provided for high school and school-to-work aged students that entails dormitory/apartment living with menu planning, food preparation, self-care skills, and laundry skills as part of the curriculum.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 80% 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 77
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 78%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 89.2%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1.12 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • 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: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Pass
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Pass
    • 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: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: Fail
    • 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: 12.3%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.23; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.6%; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.8% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 9 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 78% of revenue deployed · 89.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $28.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $367K · 26 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.9M reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 32 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 3/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: CEO compensation review process not reported.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 54/100.