Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Sep 2005.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
90 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
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; $242K paid to officers and key staff.
Donna Davis’s $132K as Executive Director is at the 10th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3683 $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 · 4 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lisa McDonald | — | $155,707 | $151,878 | $145,365 | $114,226 |
| Donna Davis | $132,354 | — | — | — | — |
| Kelly Bemus | $109,836 | — | — | — | — |
| Connie Arnold | — | $109,778 | $106,020 | $106,020 | $101,398 |
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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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 students annually using research-based methods for measurable growth.
Questions for Brighten Academy INC
Your first name shows with your question. Brighten Academy INC answers here, for everyone.
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Brighten academy, inc is responsible for the public education of all students attending the school. The charter school was created through a contract between the douglas county school district and the charter school where by all state funding associated with the students attending the charter school and certain specified local funds are…
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $3.6M | $4.7M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $7.9M | $7.6M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $16.2M | $16.0M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $22.4M | $22.3M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | −$6.2M | −$6.3M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| InterestLn 20 | $461K | $461K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $8.9M | $7.9M | $1.0M | |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $1.0M | $1.0M | ||
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $10.4M | $9.4M | $1.0M | $0 |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $10.3M | $10.4M | −$84K | −$6.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $10.2M | $12.3M | −$2.1M | −$6.2M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $8.6M | $9.5M | −$921K | −$4.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $8.9M | $8.1M | $889K | −$3.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $8.3M | $9.1M | −$725K | −$4.0M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $10,338,852 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $10,338,852 across 6 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $10,423,123 across 3 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $16,045,516 assets, 12 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets −$6,267,200 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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