The Open School EIN 46-0745295

The Open School FY2021 filing

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Empowering students with learner-led education to pursue interests and reach their full potential. For fiscal year 2021 it reported $205K in revenue, $157K in expenses, and $114K in net assets.Pt I

Founded
2012
Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Education
Location
Santa Ana, CA
Website
openschooloc.com
Filings
5 on file (2020–2021)
Revenue
$205KFY2021
Expenses
$157K
Net assets
$114K
People
15
Filings
5
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  46-0745295 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Santa Ana, CA Founded 2012
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →
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Size
$100K–1M
What they do
Empowering students with learner-led education to pursue interests and reach their full potential.
Leadership
Aaron Browder · Secretary · $28K
Money in and out
$205K revenue, $157K expenses
Bottom line
65% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2021
Total revenue
$205K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$157K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$114K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $48K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.65 Management & general $0.30 Fundraising $0.05
Program efficiency
65%
of spending reaches programs
Operating runway
11.9mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate
Surplus margin
+23%
revenue over expenses, this year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2021 · Form 990
Revenue
$205K
FY2021▲ +3%
Expenses
$157K
FY2021▼ -13%
Total assets
$162K
FY2021▲ +78%
Total liabilities
$48K
FY2021▲ +97%
Total revenue
$205K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$157K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$114K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$48K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$162K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B65%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 315
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 412
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

2 program services account for $102K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2020.
01

In July 2020, we created a Virtual Program that successfully brings self-directed democratic education into the online realm, weve decided to use this opportunity to make The Open School accessible to people everywhere, regardless of geography.

$100Kprogram expense
02

While the lockdown put a damper on our usually active field trip culture, we were able to take our kids to outdoor spaces to gather safely. We gathered at a variety of spaces to give our kids the opportunity to safely socialize and explore the world.

$2Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CThe Open School
EINHdr · item D46-0745295
Principal addressHdr · item CSanta Ana, CA
WebsiteHdr · item Jopenschooloc.com
Year of formationHdr · item L2012
State of legal domicileHdr · item MCA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFEducation (B24)
Ruling yearIRS BMFApr 2014

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a15
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b12
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13No
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2020); the FY2021 filing did not itemize Part VII
Secretary
$28,364Pt VII · Sec A
$27,359Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$8,113Pt VII · Sec A
President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Aaron Browder’s $70K as Secretary is at the 63rd percentile of top reported officer pay among 1616 $100K–1M 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 · 4 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Aaron Browder$70,269$45,230$29,866$28,364
Casandra Clausen$67,918$66,101$47,321$30,602$27,359$24,723
Tay Parker$8,113
Ben Page$1,669$600

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$162K · 79%
Contributions & grants$41K · 20%
Other revenue$2K · 1%
Program service revenue79%$162K
Contributions & grants20%$41K
Other revenue1%$2K
Investment income$6
— government grantsLn 1e$15K
Total revenueLn 12$205K

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.65 Management & general $0.30 Fundraising $0.05
Program services65%$102K
Management & general30%$47K
Fundraising5%$8K
Total functional expensesLn 25$157K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$152K
Total assetsLn 16$162K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$48K
Total net assetsLn 32$114K
Months of cash on handcomputed11.6

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2021 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $152K · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $157K · Less non-cash grants $3K · Cash operating expenses/yr $154K
11.9 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $102K · Total expenses $157K
65%
Management & General
Management & general $47K · Total expenses $157K
30%
Fundraising
Fundraising $8K · Total expenses $157K
5%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (2-yr avg) $9K · Solicited contributions (2-yr avg) $29K
$0.30 to raise $1 (2-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $41K · Total revenue $205K
20%
Government reliance
Government grants $15K · Total revenue $205K
7%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $162K · Total revenue $205K
79%
Investment reliance
Investment income $6 · Total revenue $205K
<0.01%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $162K · Total expenses $157K
103%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $205K · Prior year $199K
+3%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $114K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $205K · Expenses $157K
+23%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $162K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $114K · Total assets $162K
70%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $0 · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $0 · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $162K
0%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Aaron Browder · Reported title Secretary · Highest reported compensation $28K · Total expenses $157K
18%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $106K · Total expenses $157K
67%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 65%
Overhead ratio 30%
Fundraising cost ratio 18%
Revenue growth 3%
Investment management fee ratio 0%
Legal fee ratio 0%
Accounting fee ratio 0%
Fundraising fee ratio 0%

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 · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$6K

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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$637K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$460K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$331K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$205K revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$199K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2021IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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