Swannanoa Valley Montessori School Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 223889575
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Black Mountain, NC, USA
- Phone
- 8286698571
- Rating
- 79
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Primary, Elementary Schools
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $769,659
- Expenses
- $716,758
- Assets
- $351,282
- Liabilities
- $50,852
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
6 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Matt Brock (President)
Highest reported compensation
- Erin Van Note (Vice Pres Exec Director): $71,368 total reported compensation
- Autumn Wheeler (Board Member-Teachers Advocate): $36,567 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
With an accomplished team of caring and dedicated Montessori educators, our mission is guiding preschool-6th grade students to academic achievement, forstering a love of learning, building character, and instilling the importance of contributing to the community.
What it reported doing in 2024
In September of 2024, Hurricane Helene brought catastrophic levels of flooding to the WNC region. BMTMs school building flooded from water runoff from the road and around the building. Once we were able to assess the damage, we learned that 6,000 square feet of flooring would need to removed and replaced. This included 6,000 sq ft of asbestos tile that was underneath the floor in the building. The process was lengthy and required the school to be closed for 8 weeks. The school was able to offer reduced programming out of a local church for 3 weeks once the Town of Black Mountain restored access to water. Volunteers helped us move classrooms, clean up after the storm, empty rooms that required restoration, track down supplies and drinking water, restore the playground after storm damages, move back into the building and clean after restoration was complete. In the aftermath of the storm, we learned that we can count on our parent and local community members to help.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 77% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 74
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Accountability: 64
- Sustainability: 40
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 78.2%; rating input score 78
- Program expense ratio: 84%; rating input score 84
- Fundraising efficiency: $6.49 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th 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: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 83.3%; rating input score 83; 19th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
- 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: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 6.9%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.49; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.14; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 15.1%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.5% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 11.9% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 78.2% of revenue deployed · 84% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 5 of 6 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $602K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $71K · 6 people listed
- Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 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.
- Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 24/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 23/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 55/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 37/100.