The Spence School EIN 13-1635286

The Spence School

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Empowers diverse girls and young women for personal and global transformation. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $63.8M in revenue, $72.0M in expenses, and $342.6M in net assets.Pt I

Founded
1928
Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Education
Location
New York, NY
Website
www.spenceschool.org
Filings
5 on file (2020–2024)
Revenue
$63.8MFY2024
Expenses
$72.0M
Net assets
$342.6M
People
39
Filings
5
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  13-1635286 Public charity (501(c)(3)) New York, NY Founded 1928
Form 990 (PDF)
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Figures match the IRS filing checked 7/8/26 · see original: IRS
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Size
$10–100M
What they do
Empowers diverse girls and young women for personal and global transformation.
Leadership
Felicia Wilks · Head of School · $829K
Money in and out
$63.8M revenue, $72.0M expenses
Bottom line
84% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$63.8M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$72.0M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$342.6M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$8.2M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.84 Management & general $0.12 Fundraising $0.04
Program efficiency
84%
of spending reaches programs-0.3% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
31.9mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▼ -6% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
-13%
revenue over expenses, this year▼ -19% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$63.8M
FY2024▲ +1%
Expenses
$72.0M
FY2024▲ +3%
Total assets
$403.7M
FY2024▲ +2%
Total liabilities
$61.1M
FY2024+0.5%
Total revenue
$63.8M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$72.0M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$342.6M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$8.2M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$403.7M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B84%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 329
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 429
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $60.7M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

The spence school is an independent, college preparatory day school providing an education for girls in grades kindergarten through 12.

$60.7Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CThe Spence School
EINHdr · item D13-1635286
Principal addressHdr · item CNew York, NY
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.spenceschool.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1928
State of legal domicileHdr · item MNY
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFEducation (B200)
Ruling yearIRS BMFMar 1942

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a29
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b29
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2Yes

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Head of School
$829,470Pt VII · Sec A
Director Finance & Operations
$533,604Pt VII · Sec A
Head of Middle School
$521,562Pt VII · Sec A
Head of Lower School
$331,476Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Teaching/Learning
$326,996Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Curriculum
$317,482Pt VII · Sec A
Co-Dir. College Counseling
$287,586Pt VII · Sec A
Head of Upper School
$278,830Pt VII · Sec A

Felicia Wilks’s $829K as Head of School is at the 98th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3682 $10–100M education nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Ellanor N Brizendine$596,820$740,093$966,344$930,151$886,860
Felicia Wilks$829,470$759,003$381,500
Elyse Waterhouse$334,280$560,169$651,356$531,167$502,267
Bruce Orem$533,604$492,000$240,000
Karen Sullivan$521,562$317,324$305,324$293,924$282,374$268,649
Elizabeth Causey$331,476$317,274$303,674$292,673$281,874$267,949
Eric Zahler$326,996$307,184$304,024$294,224$285,104$263,854
Michele Murphy$317,482$303,736$290,616$273,457$263,804$250,379

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Program service revenue$53.9M · 84%
Contributions & grants$6.0M · 9%
Investment income$3.2M · 5%
Other revenue$771K · 1%
Program service revenue84%$53.9M
Contributions & grants9%$6.0M
Investment income5%$3.2M
Other revenue1%$771K
— government grantsLn 1e$567K
Total revenueLn 12$63.8M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.84 Management & general $0.12 Fundraising $0.04
Program services84%$60.7M
Management & general12%$8.3M
Fundraising4%$3.0M
Total functional expensesLn 25$72.0M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$26.7M
Total assetsLn 16$403.7M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$61.1M
Total net assetsLn 32$342.6M
Months of cash on handcomputed4.5

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $189.1M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $72.0M · Less non-cash grants $749K · Cash operating expenses/yr $71.2M
31.9 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $60.7M · Total expenses $72.0M
84%
Management & General
Management & general $8.3M · Total expenses $72.0M
12%
Fundraising
Fundraising $3.0M · Total expenses $72.0M
4%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $2.7M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $5.5M
$0.49 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $6.0M · Total revenue $63.8M
9%
Government reliance
Government grants $567K · Total revenue $63.8M
0.9%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $53.9M · Total revenue $63.8M
84%
Investment reliance
Investment income $3.2M · Total revenue $63.8M
+5%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $53.9M · Total expenses $72.0M
75%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $63.8M · Prior year $63.1M
+1%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $72.7M · FY2024 $63.8M
-3%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $342.6M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $63.8M · Expenses $72.0M
-13%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $403.7M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $342.6M · Total assets $403.7M
85%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $107.6M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $54.7M · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $403.7M
40%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Felicia Wilks · Reported title HEAD OF SCHOOL · Highest reported compensation $829K · Total expenses $72.0M
1%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $42.7M · Total expenses $72.0M
59%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 84%
Overhead ratio 12%
Fundraising cost ratio 50%
Revenue growth 1%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2025
See all 4 funders →

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2024$63.1M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$58.1M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$63.1M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$73.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$72.7M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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