Rochambeau the French International School of Washington

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
520847186
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Aug 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Bethesda, MD, USA
Phone
(301) 530-8260
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$40,745,891
Expenses
$39,365,140
Assets
$119,472,227
Liabilities
$78,019,982

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

Leadership & pay

19 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Laurent Pavageau (President)
  • Erika Aparakakankanange (Vice President)
  • Helene Legal Fabre (Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • Helene Legal Fabre (Executive Director): $283,763 total reported compensation
  • Xavier Jacquenet (Principal): $224,345 total reported compensation
  • Philippe Lucien Vanhille (Dir of Secondary School): $195,243 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The pursuit of Excellence drives our educational program, enabling our students to become confident, caring, and open-minded critical thinkers in a diverse competitive world.

What it reported doing in 2024

Rochambeau is accredited by the French Ministry of Education and the International Baccalaureate organization and recognized by the Department of Education of the State of Maryland. At all levels, the program is conducted in French and in English and follows the curriculum promulgated by the French education system or the International Baccalaureate DP program. At Rochambeau, bilingual education begins as early as 2 years old and is an integral part of the curriculum at all grade levels.- The school operated a nursery school serving children ages 2 to 5 (kindergarten level). The school is fully licensed in the State of Maryland to serve this age group. During the fiscal year, approximately 209 students attended. - The school operated an elementary school that offers elementary education to 468 children who are in 1st grade through 5th grade. - The school operated a secondary school program serving 563 students in grades 6 through 12. The high school students are prepared for the French Baccalaureate or the International Baccalaureate Diploma. The curriculum also includes the complementary courses necessary to obtain the high school diploma. With both a French Baccalaureate or an International Baccalaureate Diploma and a US high school diploma, Rochambeau students are prepared to attend colleges and universities throughout North America, Europe, or anywhere in the world.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 96% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 72
  • Accountability: 86
  • Sustainability: 55
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.6%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 83.1%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1.87 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • 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; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 3.4%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.03; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.65; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.5%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.5% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.8% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 77.6% of revenue deployed · 83.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $32.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $284K · 19 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $4.1M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 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.
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 6/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 48/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 20/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.