Southern California School Of Theology

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
951904355
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Phone
9094472500
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Graduate, Professional Schools (Separate Entities)
Affiliation
Interfaith

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,880,612
Expenses
$7,667,235
Assets
$19,445,504
Liabilities
$8,864,331

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

Leadership & pay

30 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BISHOP GRANT HAGIYA (Co President)
  • JEFFREY KUAN (Co President)

Highest reported compensation

  • STEVE-HORSWILL JOHNSTON (VP Advancement): $150,000 total reported compensation
  • ANDREW DREITCER (VP Academic Affairs): $142,883 total reported compensation
  • BISHOP GRANT HAGIYA (Co President): $138,200 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Theology Grad School Offering Interfaith and Ecumenical Degree Programs, MDIV, MA, DMIN and PHD.

What it reported doing in 2024

Instruction - 21 students in graduating class of May 2025. 9 Masters of Divinity, 2 Masters of Arts, 4 Master of Divinity, 1 Master of Theology and 5 Doctor of Philosophy

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 73% for direct work, and 27% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 71.2%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 80.8%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.76 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • 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: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -97.6%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.54; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.46; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.2%; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2.7% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -3% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -4.4% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 71.2% of revenue deployed · 80.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 22 of 24 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $7.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $150K · 30 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 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 21/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 23/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 33/100.