Simchat Torah Beit Midrash

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
841358029
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Parker, CO, USA
Phone
3038197720
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Judaism
Affiliation
Judaism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$7,712,394
Expenses
$7,432,205
Assets
$11,651,740
Liabilities
$9,032,160

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

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Ralph Messer (President)
  • Maureen Messer (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Ralph Messer (President): $177,600 total reported compensation
  • Maureen Messer (Vice President): $125,400 total reported compensation
  • Nicole Martin (Chief Operations Officer): $1,500 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Simchat Torah Beit Midrash is a non-profit organization and community that has created specialized curriculum and learning centers through out the world. In these centers we provide classes from ICTS - the International Center for Torah Studies - which teach people authentic business principles, as well as fundamental moral principles for living a successful life. Our goal is to build a foundation for men and women to reach their potential and successfully grow in a global economy, culture, and support the local community.

What it reported doing in 2024

Education, Weekly Meetings, and Benevolent Services: International Center for Torah Studies program (ICTS) - We have created this life changing program to help you reach your potential, improve your life and in turn, improve the world. We provide it online, at our STBM/ICTS centers and in the United States federal and state prisons. The ICTS program is a multi-level, multi-media curriculum facilitating college-style courses in classrooms locally, and available exclusively online. This ICTS program uses the STBM Companion Workbook and award-winning Companion Textbook whose stunning full-color design appeals to every type of student, including those who learn best by seeing and listening - called audio/visual learners. The courses are specifically designed in graduated learning tracks. Students are required to complete the courses in order. Benevolent Services provided to our local community include tuition assitance, food and rent assitance. STBM (Simchat Torah Beit Midrash), as an organization has developed digital platforms that specialize in learning and business experience. Public speaking, internet, television, radio, digital media, DVDs, CDs, and literature all play a part in STBM's outreach effort.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 91% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 46
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 76.8%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 74.1%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $249.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • 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: 3 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 3.6%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.57; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.78; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.1%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.2% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.3% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.7% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 76.8% of revenue deployed · 74.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 3 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $5.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $178K · 4 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 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.
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 46/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 53/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 11/100.