The Mind Trust

Legal name: The Mind Trust Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
204560286
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Indianapolis, IN, USA
Phone
(317) 822-8102
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and/or Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$57,932,587
Expenses
$35,611,037
Assets
$58,731,314
Liabilities
$4,295,653

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

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BRANDON BROWN (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • BRANDON BROWN (CEO): $417,980 total reported compensation
  • LESLIE SHEGOG (EXECUTIVE VP AND COO): $310,467 total reported compensation
  • KRISTIN GRIMME (CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER): $269,893 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Ensuring children in Indianapolis and in communities across the country have access to an excellent education, in pursuit of a day when income and background are no longer predictors of life outcomes.

What it reported doing in 2024

The mind trust's indianapolis-based team is passionate about improving education and life outcomes for k-12 students in indianapolis and beyond. The mind trust achieves its goals by executing on work in the following areas: growing great schools: the mind trust has supported the launch of over 50 high-quality public schools in indianapolis. The mind trust continues to support the growth of high-quality public schools through fellowships and investments in schools and networks that have proven results for students. Supporting existing schools: the mind trust manages investments and partnerships to foster collaborative learning, increase student achievement, and ensure operational excellence for a community of more than 60 indianapolis charter and innovation network schools. Engaging the community: great schools are essential for a thriving indianapolis. The mind trust is proud to provide opportunities for people in our city to connect with schools, support students, and advocate to ensure high-quality education for every student.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 62% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 79% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 72
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 58.8%; rating input score 59
  • Program expense ratio: 94.3%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: $68.13 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 27.2%; rating input score 27; 8th 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; 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: 38.5%; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.65; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.6%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16.5% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 7 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 3 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 58.8% of revenue deployed · 94.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $33.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $418K · 25 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.4M reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 34 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 65 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 56 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.
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 59/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 27/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 57/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 6/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.