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Laurel Tree Charter School FY2021 filing

Tax-deductible

Arcata, CA501(c)(3)Since 2011Education EIN 45-2661454Revenue $2.2M in FY2021

On file with the IRSlaureltreecs.org2730 Foster Ave, 95521-9503 · Arcata, CATax-exempt since Jun 2013School — 170(b)(1)(A)(ii)

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Laurel Tree Charter school's mission is to create a sustainable model of education which provides all students with accessible curriculum, based on college preparatory standards while developing life and social skills in a mixed-age setting.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
94¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$50K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

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FY2021 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
5 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $132K a year · 5% of revenue · last 6 filings
Fine: a surplus in 5 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
94%
of spending
Looks good: 94% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$50K
to officers and key staff · 3% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 3% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
1 mo
of spending, in cash
Fine: 1.2 months of spending in cash; 1 to 3.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $12K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$909K
65% of total assets
Fine: liabilities are 65% of assets; 50% to 65%.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
7
of 7 voting members
Looks good: 7 of 7 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$2.2M
+40% vs prior year
Spent
$1.8M
To programs
94%
Net assets
$492K
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$2.2M
FY2021▲ +40%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$1.5M
FY2021$2.2M
FY2022$2.6M
FY2023$2.8M
FY2024$3.3M
FY2025$3.4M
Expenses
$1.8M
FY2021▲ +2%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$1.8M
FY2021$1.8M
FY2022$2.3M
FY2023$2.8M
FY2024$3.2M
FY2025$3.2M
Net assets
$492K
FY2021▲ +303%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$122K
FY2021$492K
FY2022$834K
FY2023$795K
FY2024$864K
FY2025$1.0M

From the FY2021 Form 990 (year ending June 2021) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jun 2013.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

94 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 94% · $1.7M Management & general 6% · $111K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

8 people listed on the 990; $50K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2020); the FY2021 filing did not itemize Part VII
Brenda Sutter
School Administrator
$50,200Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Josh Nikolauson’s $67K as President/Lead Teacher is at the 12th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3395 $1–10M 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Josh Nikolauson$66,521$65,074$54,752———
Brenda Sutter$61,167$60,104$54,002$52,659$50,200$50,000

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.

See Laurel Tree Charter School executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Educates K-12 students with a sustainability focus in a teacher-run public charter school.

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Provided by the organization

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1 program · $1.7M · in their own filed words · FY2020
01

The organization has helped to improve quality of life for its diverse student population through the delivery of an individualized curriculum which emphasizes development of strong core learning competencies, knowledge, skills and attributes necessary to lead a fulfilled and successful life.

$1.7Mprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
OutrideFY2024$12K
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$12K

By the numbers

The FY2021 990, line by line.

Download 990
from philanthropy.org
1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$2.2M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.9M
Other incomeLn 4–11$227K
Investment incomeLn 3$1K
Money outPt IX
$1.8M
Ln 25
Programscol B$1.7M
Managementcol C$111K
Owns and owesPt X
$492K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$183K
Total assetsLn 16$1.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$909K
PeoplePt VI, VII
8
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a7
IndependentVI 1b7
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.9M
Government grantsLn 1e$1.9M
Investment incomeLn 3$1K
Other incomeLn 4–11$227K
Total revenueLn 12$2.2M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$1K
SavingsLn 2$182K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$183K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$657K
Total assetsLn 16$1.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$909K
Net assetsLn 32$492K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 571
VolunteersI 67
Fiscal year endsHeaderJune
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13No
Records policyVI 14No
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY21End FY21
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$207K$183K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$17K$657K
Total assetsLn 16$405K$1.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$283K$909K
Net assetsLn 32$122K$492K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$50K$50K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$891K$891K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$168K$168K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$273K$273K
Payroll taxesLn 10$32K$32K
Legal feesLn 11b$616$616
Accounting feesLn 11c$12K$12K
Information technologyLn 14$7K$7K
OccupancyLn 16$65K$65K
TravelLn 17$961$961
InterestLn 20$7K$7K
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$7K$7K
InsuranceLn 23$27K$27K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$233K$182K$51K
All other expensesLn 24e$14K$6K$8K
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.8M$1.7M$111K$0

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $3.4M$3.2M$176K$1.0M 990 PDF
FY2024Filed with the IRS May 15, 2025 $3.3M$3.2M$52K$864K 990 PDF
FY2023Filed with the IRS May 15, 2024 $2.8M$2.8M$64K$795K 990 PDF
FY2022Filed with the IRS Jun 1, 2023 $2.6M$2.3M$342K$834K 990 PDF
FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS May 16, 2022 $2.2M$1.8M$370K$492K 990 PDF
FY2020Filed with the IRS May 17, 2021 $1.5M$1.8M−$214K$122K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $2,157,110 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $1,448,249$1,928,574
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $0$0
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $2,672$1,424
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $86,123$227,112
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $1,537,044$2,157,110
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paidPrior year $0$0
I-14 Benefits paid to membersPrior year $0$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $1,311,973$1,414,627
I-16a Professional fundraising feesPrior year $0$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $439,006$372,773
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $1,750,979$1,787,400
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$213,935$369,710
Part VI · Governance 7 of 7 board members independent, 2 to look at
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body7
VI-1b Independent voting members7
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyNo
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyNo
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $2,157,110 across 5 lines filed
VIII-1e Government grants$1,928,574
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,928,574
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $1,424$1,424
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $227,112$227,112
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $227,112 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $1,424$2,157,110
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,787,400 across 15 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $50,200$50,200
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $890,817$890,817
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $168,115$168,115
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $273,107$273,107
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $32,388$32,388
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $616$616
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $11,520$11,520
IX-14 Information technologyManagement $6,779$6,779
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $65,041$65,041
IX-17 TravelPrograms $961$961
IX-20 InterestManagement $7,043$7,043
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $7,195$7,195
IX-23 InsuranceManagement $27,114$27,114
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $181,961 · Management $50,810$232,771
IX-24e All other expensesPrograms $6,193 · Management $7,540$13,733
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $1,675,978 · Management $111,422 · Fundraising $0$1,787,400
Part X · Balance sheet $1,401,096 assets, 14 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $1,000$1,000
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $205,990$182,470
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $181,763$543,113
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred charges$17,199
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $16,534$657,314
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $405,287$1,401,096
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $107,470$55,316
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $6,354$161,888
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $169,300$692,019
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $283,124$909,223
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $106,903$414,484
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $15,260$77,389
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $122,163$491,873
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $405,287$1,401,096
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $491,873 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$2,157,110
XI-2 Total expenses$1,787,400
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$369,710
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$122,163
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$491,873

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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