St Paul's Church Nursery School Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

St. Paul's nursery school (spns), a small community preschool located in the heart of historic dedham, has a community wide reputation for providing a high-quality early education program for almost 50 years.we attach importance to building a strong foundation to set children up for success, with an early childhood education experience that is dedicated to making school a fun and positive experience for all who attend. Our thoughtfully planned curriculum is one that will help our students grow and develop numerous skills that are essential to their success in the years to come. At spns, we provide an environment where children can play, express their creativity, problem solve, explore, and understand the world in their own unique way, as well as at their own developmental level.our philosophy is supported by a team of dedicated, educated, and thoughtful teachers who understand the importance of a play-based learning model that is balanced with a well-rounded educational curriculum. One where children can learn through books, art, science, cooking, music, sensory play, yoga, etc. There are so many different ways that we can learn! Spns provides numerous creative learning experiences throughout our day with flexibility in minda necessity when dealing with children at this stage of development.stars: the stars classroom is located upstairs and hosts our youngest friends at spns with children eligible to enroll starting at age 2.9 years old. Since this is typically most children's first school experience, we start by working on the transition from home to school to make it as smooth and comfortable as possible. We also place a big emphasis on setting the foundation for their social-emotional learning journey. Sharing, problem solving, using our words, and working together are just some of the things we will work on throughout the school year. Our stars friends get used to following a daily routine and work on their self-help and independence skills, with ample teacher support and guidance. The stars will also begin to be exposed to the alphabet with weekly workbook activities, letter, and name recognition, and strengthening their fine motor skills through various activities.rockets: the rockets classroom is located downstairs and is considered our "pre-k" class. This classroom continues to build on the foundation that was set in the stars classroom to ensure that all of our rockets are ready when it comes time to enter kindergarten. By strengthening their social-emotional skills through play and group discussions, building on letter recognition and phonemic awareness, and participating in pre-writing and math activities we are confident in all our graduates entering elementary school. Throughout the year, the rockets work on weekly letter themed activities, complete monthly journal entries and self-portraits, explore thematic sensory bins, work on original class books, and spending time in our writing centerand so much more!

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 78.6%; rating input score 79
• Program expense ratio: 83.2%; rating input score 83
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: Limited
• 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 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
  • Whistleblower policy: Fail
  • Document-retention policy: Fail
  • 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: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 5.5%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.64; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.42; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 29%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 14% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 26.6% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -2.6% per year; rating input score 0; 16th percentile among comparable filings