Ad Astra School
Legal name: The Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 920742101
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2022–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Austin, TX, USA
- Phone
- 7372356956
- Rating
- 66
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $409,236,759
- Expenses
- $767,579
- Assets
- $779,814,664
- Liabilities
- $11,239
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
4 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JARED BIRCHALL (PRESIDENT)
People named in this filing
- JARED BIRCHALL (PRESIDENT)
- RONALD GONG (SECRETARY)
- TERESA HOLLAND (TREASURER)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Ad Astra’s mission is to foster curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking in the next generation of problem solvers and builders. If your child has a known or suspected developmental issue or special need or disability, we will conduct an individualized assessment of your child in order to determine whether a) we possess the requisite experise and resources to provide for the best interests of your child; b) the child may pose a health or safety threat to himself or herself or others at the school; or c) admiting the child requires a fundamental alateration of our program. _Ad Astra School admits students based on merit, regardless of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminat.
What it reported doing in 2024
The foundation operates an upper and lower elementary school in bastrop, Texas focused on teaching stem subjects and other related topics. The school's primary function is formal instruction and curriculum by a regular faculty to a regularly enrolled student body in bastrop, Texas. Distance learners may be included in the future. The school's projected capacity is approximately 54 students, and it plans to expand based on the needs of the local community and on a timeline that provides for quality education and overall experience.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 28
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Accountability: 76
- Sustainability: 100
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 0.3%; rating input score 0
- Program expense ratio: 84.5%; rating input score 85
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th 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; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- 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: 99.8%; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1,015.94; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 143.2% per year; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 71.6% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 69.1% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site
- Where the money goes: 0.3% of revenue deployed · 84.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 4 of 4 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $649K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 4 people listed
- Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $662K reported
- Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- 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.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.