Masters School EIN 13-1740472

Masters School

EIN  13-1740472 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Dobbs Ferry, NY Founded 1877
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 7/8/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$10–100M
What they do
Fosters active learning, deep understanding, and meaningful connections for a diverse community.
Leadership
Laura Danforth · Head of School · $722K
Money in and out
$66.1M revenue, $55.3M expenses
Bottom line
84% program efficiency

Fosters active learning, deep understanding, and meaningful connections for a diverse community. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $66.1M in revenue, $55.3M in expenses, and $198.2M in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$66.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$55.3M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$198.2M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $10.8M
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 programs0% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
27.1mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▼ -2% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
+16%
revenue over expenses, this year▲ +295% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$66.1M
FY2024▲ +21%
Expenses
$55.3M
FY2024▲ +5%
Total assets
$239.5M
FY2024▲ +9%
Total liabilities
$41.3M
FY2024▲ +11%
Total revenue
$66.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$55.3M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$198.2M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$10.8M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$239.5M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B84%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 321
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 421
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $46.4M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

The masters school is an independent day and boarding school, for students in grades 5 through 12, that empowers independent thinkers through an expansive and innovative curriculum based on active intellectual exploration.

$46.4Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CMasters School
EINHdr · item D13-1740472
Principal addressHdr · item CDobbs Ferry, NY
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.mastersny.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1877
State of legal domicileHdr · item MNY
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFNonprofit
Ruling yearIRS BMFAug 1925

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a21
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b21
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 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Head of School
$722,056Pt VII · Sec A
Assoc. Head of School, Inst. Advancement
$312,678Pt VII · Sec A
Assoc. Head for Finac. & Operat.
$303,386Pt VII · Sec A
Assoc. Head for Enroll. & Strat.
$197,676Pt VII · Sec A
Assoc. Head for Faculty & Academics
$194,230Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Operations
$192,064Pt VII · Sec A
Head of Middle School
$190,984Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

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

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Laura Danforth$722,056$668,101$646,761$1,161,018$463,236$431,108
Seth Marx$312,678$293,996$266,314$234,678$243,450$214,819
Andrew Schneider$303,386$301,527$151,730
Edward Biddle$191,251$226,118$223,470$221,735
Emma Katznelson$197,676$191,011$179,511$170,336$162,853$152,158
Daniel Pereira$192,064$197,142$182,166$162,519$153,974$150,822
Sam Savage$194,230
Tasha Elsbach$190,984$185,795$174,423$171,087$166,101$164,606

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$44.9M · 68%
Contributions & grants$15.5M · 23%
Investment income$5.4M · 8%
Other revenue$357K · 1%
Program service revenue68%$44.9M
Contributions & grants23%$15.5M
Investment income8%$5.4M
Other revenue1%$357K
Total revenueLn 12$66.1M

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%$46.4M
Management & general12%$6.7M
Fundraising4%$2.2M
Total functional expensesLn 25$55.3M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$33.0M
Total assetsLn 16$239.5M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$41.3M
Total net assetsLn 32$198.2M
Months of cash on handcomputed7.2

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $123.4M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $55.3M · Less non-cash grants $704K · Cash operating expenses/yr $54.6M
27.1 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $46.4M · Total expenses $55.3M
84%
Management & General
Management & general $6.7M · Total expenses $55.3M
12%
Fundraising
Fundraising $2.2M · Total expenses $55.3M
4%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $2.1M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $13.9M
$0.15 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $15.5M · Total revenue $66.1M
23%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $66.1M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $44.9M · Total revenue $66.1M
68%
Investment reliance
Investment income $5.4M · Total revenue $66.1M
+8%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $44.9M · Total expenses $55.3M
81%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $66.1M · Prior year $54.8M
+21%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $60.7M · FY2024 $66.1M
+2%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $198.2M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $66.1M · Expenses $55.3M
+16%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $239.5M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $198.2M · Total assets $239.5M
83%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $90.4M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $239.5M
38%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Laura Danforth · Reported title HEAD OF SCHOOL · Highest reported compensation $722K · Total expenses $55.3M
1%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $28.5M · Total expenses $55.3M
51%
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 14%
Revenue growth 21%

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
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$15K

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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$54.8M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$66.9M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$59.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$50.8M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$60.7M 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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