The Frederick Gunn School Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
060646661
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Washington, CT, USA
Phone
8608687334
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Secondary, High School

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$36,703,517
Expenses
$32,085,130
Assets
$129,160,095
Liabilities
$35,651,401

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

Leadership & pay

37 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • EMILY GUM (TRUSTEE - HEAD OF SCHOOL): $497,545 total reported compensation
  • CHRISTOPHER W COWELL (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $336,518 total reported compensation
  • SETH LOW (ASSOCIATE HEAD OF SCHOOL): $315,385 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 frederick gunn school cultivates independent critical thinkers empowered to be a force for good. We educate highlanders to be ambitious citizens who are always learning and courageous in character like our founders frederick and abigail gunn.

What it reported doing in 2024

The program service activities provided by the school are those associated with college preparatory institutions. These activities include providing students a secondary education, dormitory services and a school store.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 70% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 76% for direct work, and 24% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 65
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 88
  • Sustainability: 68
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 67.8%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 76.2%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.9 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • 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; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 96.2%; rating input score 96; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 12.6%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.03; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.4%; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.6% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 67.8% of revenue deployed · 76.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 25 of 26 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $24.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $498K · 37 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.5M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 15/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 40/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 49/100.