SOAR Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
581505954
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2021
Location
Balsam, NC, USA
Phone
8284563435
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,523,005
Expenses
$5,516,107
Assets
$7,321,763
Liabilities
$1,824,442

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • John Willson (President & CEO)
  • Jonathan D Jones (Vice President)
  • Logan Walters (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • John Willson (President & CEO): $157,740 total reported compensation
  • Joseph Geier (Head of School): $91,143 total reported compensation
  • Jonathan D Jones (Vice President): $76,487 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Soar is a seasonal accredited educational academy, gap year program, and outdoor adventure camp dedicated to a two-fold purpose: to provide academic instruction, experiential education, interpersonal life skills development and outdoor adventure based programming to youth dealing with learning disabilities, and/or attention deficit disorders through their participation in the academy at soar. To provide experiential education, interpersonal life skills development and outdoor adventure based programming to youth, young adults and families dealing with learning disabilities, and/or attention deficit disorders through soar's outdoor adventure camp programs, gap year program, and community based services. Soar embraces a commitment to service that is evident in the professional and community involvement of its staff members. Soar is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.

What it reported doing in 2024

Participants in SOAR's summer camps, academy and gap year programs take part in adventure experiences designed to develop problem solving skills, effective communication strategies, general social skills and to increase self-awareness by achieving success in various outdoor activities. Each student builds essential self-esteem and self-confidence that translates into all walks of life. SOAR's success based programs focus on the gifts and abilities of each youth-strengths that will launch them into a life filled with opportunity and success. As an accredited boarding school, our academy at SOAR has granted students high school diplomas as they have successfully completed required coursework.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 92% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 96% 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. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 63
  • Accountability: 80
  • Sustainability: 39
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.4%; rating input score 79
  • Program expense ratio: 81.7%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $0.94 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 2; 2nd 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: Scored; rating input score 0
  • 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: 75%; rating input score 75; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.1%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.33; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.25; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.9%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.1% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.8% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.4% of revenue deployed · 81.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 12 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $158K · 13 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 2/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 34/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 39/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 42/100.