St John Chrysostom Academy

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
842177887
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Bethlehem, PA, USA
Phone
6104272758
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Fund Raising and/or Fund Distribution
Affiliation
Christianity

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,384,151
Expenses
$1,362,509
Assets
$211,219
Liabilities
$304,802

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • JOHN HEITZENRATER (HEADMASTER): $162,486 total reported compensation
  • JENNIFER BZIK (TREASURER): $4,178 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Mission st. John chrysostom academy unites classical education and orthodox christian formation. Students benefit from the reliable disciplines of formal education and the nurturing environment of faith. Young minds are directed toward the good, the true, and the beautiful, and young hearts toward the gospel and holy tradition to educate and form our students as complete persons. Vision st. John chrysostom academy provides classical, christian education so that students will grow in virtue, wisdom, and joy. Chrysostom academy is dedicated to providing a comprehensive formational education in harmony with the eastern orthodox church. Guided by a commitment to the timeless traditions of the christian church, mind, and worldview, chrysostom academy educates students for the church, the lehigh valley, the united states, and the world.

What it reported doing in 2024

During the fiscal year ending june 2025, the academy was able to accomplish the following: 1.academic year 2024-2025 - the academy opened the academic year to students on september 4, 2024, with 89 students. 11th grade was also added to high school. 2.facility - all classrooms and labs were ready to serve students on the first day of school. All new furniture, chalk boards, and textbooks were purchased and ready for students in september 2024. Taking into account the summer expansion, new curriculum materials were purchased for students. 3.curriculum - all student resources were purchased and ready for the beginning of school. 4.faculty/staff - a total of 17 staff/faculty began the school year. There was a retention rate of this year of nearly 100%. 5.students - in addition to the 89 students enrolled at the beginning of the academic year, 2 more students were accepted into the program mid-year. 6.culture - a lot of thought and time was spent developing both faculty/staff culture and student culture. The theater program was enhanced with both shakespearean and modern performances. 7.faculty/parent council - a parent teacher organization, faculty/parent council continued with 11 parents. 8.accreditation - the academy continued the process of working toward full accreditation from the association of christian schools international. 9.marketing - definition of the academy brand, in both online and physical forms (mailings, print media, and school spirit wear, were expanded during the 2024-2025 academic year. Regular and consistent social media posts were targeted at demographics of families essential to the growth and success of the school. 10.fundraising coordinator - was hired in the middle of fy 2023/2024. His role was enhanced and broadened to include community outreach and service.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 78% 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. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 61
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 25
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 74.5%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 75.8%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $14.65 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • 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: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 1.6%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.16; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.44; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 12.2%; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 40% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 15.7% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -28.2% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 74.5% of revenue deployed · 75.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $162K · 10 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 50/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 41/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 3/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 30/100.