Sterling Schools Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363575698
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2020
Location
Sterling, IL, USA
Phone
8156260022
Rating
91
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,997,750
Expenses
$2,048,357
Assets
$7,914,542
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SCOTT WOLBER (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JIM C SPENCER (EXECUTIVE DI): $89,674 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To promote excellence by finding creative and innovative projects for the staff and students of sterling's schools. Foundation monies allow the sterling school system to initiate, continue, or expand educational projects otherwise left without adequate money to proceed because of budgetary constraints or compelling priorities. The foundation is dedicated to the identification and funding of programs and projects that will raise the level of academic achievement of all sterling public school students. Our goal is to help provide the very best education for students as they prepare for challenges of life.

What it reported doing in 2024

Auditorium operations - centennial auditorium is located on the campus of sterling high school, which is part of the sterling public school system. The sterling schools foundation raised the funds to build the auditorium in 1998 and continues to fund all operational expenses at the facility, including upkeep, maintenance, utilities, and staff. This is an ongoing program and served 15,000 people this year.

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 66% for direct work, and 34% for grants.

The verdict

STRONG - 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.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 96
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 89.6%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $269.84 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: 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • 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: 31.7%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.86; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: Limited

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.1% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $1.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $90K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 8 not reported.