The Brooklyn Montessori Ltd

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
010778179
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Brooklyn, NY, USA
Phone
7183982322
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Child Day Care

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,916,626
Expenses
$3,818,002
Assets
$3,485,502
Liabilities
$2,035,488

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JENNY TOLAN (PRESIDENT)
  • DAVIS HERRON (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • LATISHA COOK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • LATISHA COOK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $193,153 total reported compensation
  • ASHLEY EVANS (ASSISTANT DIRECTOR): $168,061 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of our school is to provide affordable, high quality pre-school education guided by the montessori teaching principles, with the goal of fostering in our children a strong sense of independence, creativity, respect for self and others, and an appreciation of diversity in people, and a deep love of learning. Our school is a community that prides itself on its respect for, and celebration of, diversity. Our families and staff come from a number of cultures, speak a number of different languages, celebrate different religions, represent diverse family constellations, and generally, reflect all the faces of brooklyn. This respect for and commitment to diversity is reflected not only in our hiring and employment practices, but is also a consideration in our admissions procedures. Respect and positive communication are key values for our school.

What it reported doing in 2024

At montessori day school of brooklyn (brooklyn montessori ltd), we continued to serve families and children in prospect heights, brooklyn through the 2024-25 school year. We worked with up to 109 two- to five-year-old children daily, in seven classrooms, using our montessori-focused pedagogy to help them grow as independent learners and engaged participants, both here at school and in the wider community. Faculty (both lead teacher, assistant level and administration) continued to develop their montessori-based skills and knowledge by attending the yearly american montessori society (ams) conference; by attending intensive infant/toddler or early childhood training programs at west side montessori school in manhattan; by participating in online and local workshops offered by ams and the center for emotionally responsive teaching practices; and by receiving mentorship from experienced and credentialed teachers in our program. We continued to hold onsite professional development workshops on topics ranging from lifesaving procedures to early childhood best practices. We continued working with parents by conferring with them individually about their children's development and by preparing them for the next steps beyond this preschool program with our independent and public "next schools nights" series, as well as through montessori at home and parenting workshops. Teachers and the exec. Director also provided parents with written guidance about expectations for children's growth and progress in a montessori early childhood setting. We allocate 3.45% of our annual budget toward funds reserved for our tuition assistance program and maintained the maximum aid award at 50% assistance. The program was authorized to distribute up to $156,923.88 in aid to families for the 2024-25 school year.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 97% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 95% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

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

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 36
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 75.7%; rating input score 76
  • Program expense ratio: 78.2%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.05 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.5%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.91; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.58; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.5%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.2% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 75.7% of revenue deployed · 78.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $193K · 16 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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 22/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 34/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 17/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 32/100.