Colburn School

What it reported doing in 2024

See schedule othe colburn school (the "school") is a California not-for-profit corporation located in the heart of downtown los angeles, California. Led by an outstanding faculty, the school provides dedicated students the highest quality performing arts education with an emphasis on performance.the school was founded in 1950 as a preparatory program for the university of southern California and fulfilled that function until 1980 when it became an independent community school for the performing arts and was accredited as a non-degree-granting institution by the national association of schools of music (nasm). Currently, this program is known as the colburn school of performing arts (cspa) and offers programs in music, dance, drama, and voice to approximately 2,000 students of all ages (toddler to adult) and abilities (novice through advanced). The school also operates community outreach programs that bring performing arts to under-served children in inner-city schools.the colburn conservatory of music (cscm), established in 2003, offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs specializing in classical music performance. Cscm programs range from two to four years of study and result in one of the following: a bachelor of music degree, a performance diploma, a master of music degree, an artist's diploma, or a professional studies certificate. Admission to cscm is highly selective, and cscm provides all students with scholarships that cover full tuition and room and board. Cscm enrolled 130 and 133 students during the years ended june 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. Cscm is accredited by the nasm as a degree-granting school.the colburn music academy (csma), established in 2010, is a non-degree program designed to provide a comprehensive curriculum of classes to highly gifted pre-college students focused on careers in music. Csma enrolled 44 and 50 students during the years ended june 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The trudl zipper dance institute (tzdi) was created in 2008, carving out the youth and adult dance classes from cspa. The dance academy was created in 2014 under tzdi as a pre-professional training program for a select group of ballet students aged 14-18. Tzdi enrolled 353 and 296 students during the years ended june 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, in its ballet, tap, and modern dance programs. In addition, the dance academy enrolled 18 students during the years ended june 30, 2025 and 2024. Performing arts and other academic programs includes expenses for the provost office, library, and the production department, which provide additional support to the various programs of study and further our mission of performing arts in addition to education.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 81.9%; rating input score 82
• Program expense ratio: 81.3%; rating input score 81
• Fundraising efficiency: $8.44 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 18.5%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 13.39; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 7.7%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 1.7% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 10.4% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings