Utica Academy of Science Charter School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
461520825
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2016
Forms available
Form 990 2016
Location
Syracuse, NY, USA
Phone
3154288997
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Charter Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,477,720
Expenses
$4,116,906
Assets
$1,258,755
Liabilities
$376,872

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2016. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Dr Fehmi Damkaci (Board President)
  • Dr Ahmet Ay (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Tolga Hayali (Superintendent): $139,330 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2016. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

See Schedule OUtica Academy of Science Charter School will provide support, challenges and opportunities for its students, and it will instill the necessary skills and knowledge in math, science, and technology to empower students, through high intellectual standards, preparing them for college, career, and citizenship. The School seeks to graduate students who can think critically and creatively, who are committed to a lifetime of learning and civic involvement, and who are conscious of local, global, and environmental issues.

What it reported doing in 2016

FOOD SERVICE: The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 main goal is to improve child nutrition. The School participates in the National School Lunch Program to provide our students grades 6-11 healthy options for breakfast and lunch. We offer all of our students this program to promote wellness, prevent and reduce childhood obesity, and encourage students to make healthy choices. Eating nutritious meals daily will help students improve academically and also improve children's lifelong eating and physical activity habits. Participating in the National School Lunch Program also provides nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free lunches to our students each school day. We want to ensure all students including low-income households receive the same nutritional value regardless of their financial situation.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 94% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 49
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.9%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 84.6%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: 8.1%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.31; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.3; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.6%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 29.3% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 23.3% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.3% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.9% of revenue deployed · 84.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $3.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $139K · 8 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $132K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2013 to 2016
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 41/100.