Crosby Scholars Rowan

What it reported doing in 2024

Rowan County Crosby Scholars is a college access program through which public school students begin to prepare academically, financially, and personally for successful college admission as early as middle school. We are partnered with Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina Inc. and modeled after the successful Crosby Scholars Community Partnership in Forsyth County, which graduates 100% of its seniors and sends 98% of its graduates on to access post-secondary education. Every public middle and high school student in Rowan County is eligible to join our program before 12th grade. Each year, students are encouraged to maintain at least a 2.0 GPA, attend a Crosby Academy workshop, complete and submit community service hours, follow school policies (i.e., no out-of-school suspensions), and commit to remaining drug/tobacco/alcohol free. High school students must also attend a college fair or visit four college campuses before graduation, and seniors must meet with 1:1 advisors throughout 12th grade to prepare for their next steps toward post-secondary plans. Students have the option of participating in additional college preparation meetings, which are led by staff or partner agencies. Students who complete all of the requirements each year automatically stay in the program as they progress through high school graduation. Enrollment in 2024 totaled 1,961 students in grades 6th-12th. Of those, 1,306 students received credit for attending one or more of our academy workshops. Community service hours were submitted by 1,198 of our students, who combined recorded over 5,379 hours of volunteer work. Our program provides college access training to parents, guardians, and volunteers so that each senior has a 1:1 advisor to meet with throughout the school year for assistance with the college process. In addition to the individual meetings, senior academy workshops were held to help with essay writing, college applications, standardized test taking, understanding financial aid, and general preparation for the freshman year of college. To date, the Rowan County Crosby Scholars program has graduated over 1,595 seniors.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 58.9%; rating input score 59
• Program expense ratio: 68.8%; rating input score 69
• Fundraising efficiency: $8.54 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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; 76th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 95.5%; rating input score 95; 25th 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: 36%; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.22; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 22%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 14.2% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 8% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 14.8% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings