Scottish Rite Foundation Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
626209505
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Knoxville, TN, USA
Phone
8659249179
Rating
52
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$160,212
Expenses
$98,327
Assets
$1,159,550
Liabilities
$55,079

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

People named in this filing

  • Harvey H Lafollette (Trustee)
  • Derek K Adamson (Trustee)
  • Michael G Weems (Trustee)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To provide scholarships and educational assistance to those with merit and in need. Also to provide shoes & socks to needy children & provide speech and hearing therapy for children at speech and hearing clinics in east Tennessee

What it reported doing in 2025

Scholarships given to various colleges & universities for educational assistance to those with merit and in need of financial assistance.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and revenue comfortably covers expenses. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and a relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 12
  • Sustainability: 78
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 51.4%; rating input score 51
  • Program expense ratio: 60.4%; rating input score 60
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.51 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 83.3%; rating input score 83; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 38.6%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 11.79; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.6% per year; rating input score 0; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 20.4% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 51.4% of revenue deployed · 60.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 13 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $59K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 16 of 17 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 51/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 15/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 28/100.