Trident Academy Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
570542727
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2023
Forms available
Form 990 2023
Location
Mt Pleasant, SC, USA
Phone
8438847046
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specialized Education Institutions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,066,011
Expenses
$2,743,002
Assets
$1,744,053
Liabilities
$452,308

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DIANE TUASIG (Vice President)
  • MIKE JERESATY (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • BETSY FANNING (HEADMASTER): $188,855 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Trident academy, through individualized, multi-sensory and research-based teaching approaches, transforms the lives of cognitively capable k-12 children diagnosed with learning differences.

What it reported doing in 2023

Form 990 - organization's mission or most significant activitiestrident academy, through individualized, multi-sensory, and research-based teachingapproaches, transforms the lives of cognitively capable k-12 children diagnosed with learning differences.trident academy is a special place! We offer an individualized diagnostic and prescriptive approach that gives our students the confidence and tools they need to succeed here and when transitioning back into more traditional school settings. Trident academy truly fills acritical need in the lives of our students and families! At trident academy, we understand that students who learn differently needto be taught differently. Our teachers employ the orton-gillingham (og)approach in all classes which offers a very structured, diagnostic andprescriptive approach to identifying and working with each studentsindividual needs. Students are taught traditional subjects using variousmulti-sensory techniques, experiences outside of the classroom thatcorrespond to relevant subject matter and via the incorporation ofassistive technology.our student population is small compared to traditional schools - we had 63students in our program for 2023-2024; however, this is by design. Webelieve that not only does small classroom size and individualizedinstruction help our students become better learners, but it also helpsthem build confidence and self-awareness.research over the last 25 years shows the strides students can make intheir test scores in an average academic year at trident academy.analyzing standardized pre- and post- test scores during the 2023-2024 school year, our students: vocabulary scores increased 17.5%comprehension scores increased 25.3%mathematics scores increased 9.70%the trident academy parent's association (tapa) raises funds and supportscommunity building activities like the fall festival & field day. Itraises funds through various means such as product sales and events.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 60% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 93% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 47
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 70.6%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 78.9%; rating input score 79
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.6 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: 10.5%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.64; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.26; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.9%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -8.6% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 70.6% of revenue deployed · 78.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $189K · 9 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2011 to 2023
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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: Fundraising efficiency scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 23/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 39/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 41/100.