School of Imagination Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 208683005
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Dublin, CA, USA
- Phone
- 9288299555
- Rating
- 78
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Kindergarten, Preschool, Nursery School, Early Admissions
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $4,463,821
- Expenses
- $4,728,547
- Assets
- $10,609,586
- Liabilities
- $2,419,389
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
13 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Jeffery Tortorici (President)
- Charlene Sigman (Executive Director)
Highest reported compensation
- Charlene Sigman (Executive Director): $186,326 total reported compensation
- Mitch Sigman (Director): $178,585 total reported compensation
- Aye Thin (Director of Revenue Cycle): $115,683 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 School of Imagination continues to lead the way in inclusive early childhood education and multidisciplinary intervention for neurodiverse learners. Our mission remains unwavering: to bring out the extraordinary in every child. In 2024, we expanded access to services, advanced operational efficiency, and strengthened sustainability to meet the growing needs of families across the Bay Area and beyond.Our comprehensive care modelcombining education, behavioral health, and therapy servicesnow supports more than 700 children annually. Through a unified approach across our educational and clinical programs, we ensure continuity of care and measurable outcomes for each child.
What it reported doing in 2024
The School of Imagination's educational programs thrived in 2024, with continued innovation in curriculum design, teacher development, and classroom quality. We implemented new early learning frameworks in partnership with leading curriculum providers, improving structure and consistency across all classrooms.With small class sizes, low teacher-to-student ratios, and certified early childhood specialists, we continue to provide a nurturing environment for children ages 18 months to 5 years preparing them for lifelong success.Educator professional development remained a top priority, with expanded training in inclusive practices, communication strategies, and early literacy.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 94% 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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 81
- Transparency & Controls: 70
- Accountability: 91
- Sustainability: 36
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 92.9%; rating input score 93
- Program expense ratio: 87.9%; rating input score 88
- Fundraising efficiency: $1.49 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -5.9%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.24; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 12.3%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 9.8% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 31.9% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 92.9% of revenue deployed · 87.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $4.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $186K · 13 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $3.8M reported
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
- 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 4/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 19/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 41/100.