The Principia

Legal name: The Principia Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
430652667
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
St Louis, MO, USA
Phone
3144342100
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Elementary, Secondary Education, K - 12
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$158,233,307
Expenses
$113,512,077
Assets
$1,286,700,453
Liabilities
$54,770,792

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

Leadership & pay

35 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Barbara Blackwell (Chief Executive)
  • Daniel Norton (College President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Barbara Blackwell (Chief Executive): $436,410 total reported compensation
  • Merry Sorrells (Head of School): $352,769 total reported compensation
  • Daniel Norton (College President): $352,044 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Principia College exists to provide a rigorous education in service to the Cause of Christian Science. We stand out by recognizing the whole and unique person in each student. Our mission is to cultivate collaborative creative thinkers and doers who are prepared to seek and find healing solutions.

What it reported doing in 2024

Instruction: in 1897, mary kimball morgan, a christian scientist, began home-schooling her two sons because she believed she could give them a fuller education than what was being offered in the public schools. Gradually, it became apparent to mrs. Morgan that the establishment of a school was needed. The name "principia", meaning "first principles," was chosen for the school mrs. Morgan established in 1898. Principia's primary purpose is to serve the cause of christian science as an educational institution - not through teaching the theology of christian science, but through providing programs which will allow its students to grow intellectually, athletically, socially, morally, and spiritually with the support and example of fellow students, faculty, and staff. Principia strives to train its students "to think clearly, vigorously, fearlessly, tolerantly, unselfishly." teaching at principia also "emphasizes the point of view that education carries with it the obligation to use technical skills and intellectual attainments for the betterment of humanity." (continued on schedule o)

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 80% 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 - 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: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 67
  • Accountability: 78
  • Sustainability: 84
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 96.3%; rating input score 96
  • Program expense ratio: 74.6%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.5 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 71.4%; rating input score 71; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • 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: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 28.3%; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 11.34; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2% per year; rating input score 100; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 96.3% of revenue deployed · 74.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $84.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $436K · 35 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $5.5M reported
  • Consistency: 41 of 42 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 12 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 23 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 34/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 26/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.