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71 Commercial Street
#232
Boston MA 02109
Boston MA | IRS ruling year: 2016 | EIN: 36-4817073
THE LUMINOS FUND PROVIDES TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO THOUSANDS OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN, HELPING THEM TO CATCH UP TO GRADE LEVEL, REINTEGRATE INTO LOCAL S ... (More)
THE LUMINOS FUND PROVIDES TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO THOUSANDS OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN, HELPING THEM TO CATCH UP TO GRADE LEVEL, REINTEGRATE INTO LOCAL SCHOOLS, AND PREPARE FOR LIFELONG LEARNING. (Less)
Great
This charity's score is 100%, earning it a Four-Star rating. If this organization aligns with your passions and values, you can give with confidence.
This overall score is calculated from multiple beacon scores: 85% Accountability & Finance, 10% Leadership & Adaptability, 5% Culture & Community. Learn more about our criteria and methodology.
We recognize that not all metrics and beacons equally predict a charity’s success. The percentage each beacon contributes to the organization’s overall rating depends on the number of beacons an organization has earned.
Use the tool below to select different beacons to see how the weighting shifts when only one, two, or three beacons are earned.
Rating histories are available for a growing number of rated organizations. Check back later to see if this organization has a rating history!
The IRS is significantly delayed in processing nonprofits' annual tax filings (Forms 990). As a result, the Accountability & Finance score for Luminos Fund is outdated and the overall rating may not be representative of its current operations. Please check with the charity directly for any questions you may have.
Luminos Fund has earned a 100% for the Accountability & Finance beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of a charity's financial health (financial efficiency, sustainability, and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies.
This Accountability & Finance score represents IRS Form 990 data up until FY 2020, which is the most recent Form 990 currently available to us.
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Full Credit
Partial Credit
No Credit
Not ApplicableBoard Composition - 5/5 - 25/25 ptsBoard Composition - 5/5 - 25/25 pts
Charity Navigator looks for at least 3 board members, with more than 50% of those members identified as independent (not salaried).
The presence of an independent governing body is strongly recommended by many industry professionals to allow for full deliberation and diversity of thinking on governance and other organizational matters.
Source: IRS Form 990
Independent Audit or Financial Review - Audited - 20/20 ptsIndependent Audit or Financial Review - Audited - 20/20 pts
An Audit, Review, or Compilation provides important information about financial accountability and accuracy. Organizations are scored based on their Total Revenue Amount:
| Total Revenue Amount | Expectation to Receive Credit |
|---|---|
| $1 million or higher | Expected to complete an audit |
| $500,000 - $1 million | Expected to complete an audit, review, or compilation |
| Less than $500,000 | No expectation (removed from scoring methodology) |
Source: IRS Form 990
Conflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 3/3 ptsConflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a conflict of interest policy on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy protects the organization and by extension those it serves, when it is considering entering into a transaction that may benefit the private interest of an officer, director and/or key employee of the organization.
Source: IRS Form 990
Board Meeting Minutes - Documented - 3/3 ptsBoard Meeting Minutes - Documented - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990 that the organization has this process in place as an accountability and transparency measure.
An official record of the events that take place during a board meeting ensures that a contemporaneous document exists for future reference.
Source: IRS Form 990
Document Retention and Destruction - Listed - 3/3 ptsDocument Retention and Destruction - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a document retention and destruction policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy establishes guidelines for the handling, backing up, archiving and destruction of documents. These guidelines foster good record keeping procedures that promote data integrity.
Source: IRS Form 990
Whistleblower Policy - Listed - 3/3 ptsWhistleblower Policy - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a whistleblower policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy outlines procedures for handling employee complaints, as well as a confidential way for employees to report financial or other types of mismanagement.
Source: IRS Form 990
Website - Listed - 3/3 ptsWebsite - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for a website on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency metric.
Nonprofits act in the public trust and reporting publicly on activities is an important component.
Source: IRS Form 990
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 1.01% - 15/15 ptsLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 1.01% - 15/15 pts
The Liabilities to Assets Ratio is determined by Total Liabilities divided by Total Assets (most recent 990). This ratio is an indicator of an organization’s solvency and/or long-term sustainability.
| Liabilities to Assets Ratio | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| Less than 50% | Full Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Partial Credit |
| 60% or more | No Credit |
Source: IRS Form 990
Program Expense Ratio - 81.51% - 25/25 ptsProgram Expense Ratio - 81.51% - 25/25 pts
The Program Expense Ratio is determined by Program Expenses divided by Total Expense (average of most recent three 990s). This measure reflects the percent of its total expenses a charity spends on the programs and services it exists to deliver.
| Program Expense Percentage | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| 70% or higher | Full Credit |
| 60% - 69.9% | Partial Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Zero Points for Program Expense Score |
| Below 50% | Zero Points for Both Program Expense AND Liabilities to Assets Scores |
Source: IRS Form 990
This chart displays the trend of revenue and expenses over the past several years for this organization, as reported on their IRS Form 990.
No Data Available
Key Persons data is currently unavailable for this organization. This data is only available if this charity has at least one year of electronically-filed Form 990 data filed within the last six years.
Below are some key data points from the Exempt Organization IRS Business Master File (BMF) for this organization. Learn more about the BMF on the IRS website
Activities:
Activity data not reported from the IRS
Foundation Status:
Organization which receives a substantial part of its support from a governmental unit or the general public 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) (BMF foundation code: 15)
Affiliation:
Independent - the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary (i.e., not affiliated with a National, Regional, or Geographic grouping of organizations). (BMF affiliation code: 3)
The Form 990 is a document that nonprofit organizations file with the IRS annually. We leverage finance and accountability data from it to form Encompass ratings. Click here to search for this organization's Forms 990 on the IRS website (if any are available). Simply enter the organization's name (Luminos Fund) or EIN (364817073) in the 'Search Term' field.
This organization was impacted by COVID-19 in a way that effected their financial health in 2020. This normally would have reduced their star rating. Due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, we give charities such as this one the opportunity to share the story of COVID's impact on them, and doing this pauses our revision of their rating. Charities may submit their own pandemic responses through their nonprofit portal.
Luminos Fund reported being impacted by COVID-19 in the following ways:
Program Delivery
Revenue
Balance Sheet
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's operations financially:
The Luminos Fund’s central funding partners have been on the journey with us in responding to the COVID-19 crisis from the very beginning. Each of our partners signaled early that they would honor their funding commitments fully, and committed to making active grants more flexible, as the situation on the ground requires. We were also heartened to see the expansion of our funder base in this difficult time, and we believe this is reflective of our unique relevance to the current crisis. However, due to COVID-related school closures that disrupted programmatic operations, we had an underspend in our 2020 budget. The funding has been reprogrammed for 2021 and future years. Our 2021 budget reflects 20% growth from the 2020 funded budget. Much of the increase in our future budget is provisioned for 1) scaling the Second Chance program within our current countries of operation, 2) program expansions to new countries like Ghana and The Gambia, and 3) development of our program toolkit.
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's delivery of programs:
At the high point of the COVID-19 crisis, 1.6 billion children worldwide were forced out of school due to school closures. Nonetheless, our team has remained busier than ever. We adapted our programming to include new ways of learning, and distributed learning materials and food to children and families impacted by lockdowns. In Ethiopia and Liberia we pivoted to include in-person, physically distanced “micro-classes,” comprised of 4-7 students. We also provided health and safety best-practice guidance to families and communities, including WASH programs and community wash stations. In Lebanon, we pivoted to e-learning delivery: curriculum-aligned educational videos and learning materials were shared 3-4 times per week. Teachers followed up with students through phone calls and messaging. We expect the majority of our program classes will reopen normally for the 2021-2022 student cohort, while following COVID precautions. Lebanon classes are still operating remotely for now.
How this organization adapted to changing conditions caused by COVID-19:
During COVID-19 and as we look to future crises, the Luminos Fund is working diligently to be agile and responsive to our communities’ evolving needs and to partner closely with governments and others in the social sector to ensure we’re staying on the cutting edge of best practices. Luminos works in inherently fragile contexts: this is not the first major crisis we have faced, nor will it be the last. During COVID-19 school closures in our countries of operation, the Luminos team took action to ensure that the communities we serve received appropriate relief, while remaining safe and connected to learning. We promptly distributed masks and sanitizers, foodstuffs (e.g., bags of rice to support affected families), as well as delivered materials to support remote learning. The structure of our organization remains largely the same, with an emphasis on hiring the best job candidates for our team who may be based in our program countries, our small Boston headquarters, or remotely.
Innovations the organization intends to continue permanently after the pandemic:
As the world continues to navigate COVID-19 and beyond, Luminos will continue to prioritize the health and safety of our students. Through 2020 and continuing today, Luminos has worked closely with the Ministries of Education (MOE) to explore all available options for resuming classroom learning safely for our children, in accordance with health guidelines. Luminos will continue to prioritize close collaboration with governments in each of our countries of operation. We have also invested in more robust e-learning platforms and remote learning content to support our students in Lebanon and will continue, when possible, to identify appropriate opportunities to meaningfully integrate technology into the teaching and learning process in each of our program countries.
Not Currently Scored
Luminos Fund cannot currently be evaluated by our Impact & Results methodology because either (A) it is eligible, but we have not yet received data; (B) we have not yet developed an algorithm to estimate its programmatic impact; (C) its programs are not direct services; or (D) it is not heavily reliant on contributions from individual donors.
Note: The absence of a score does not indicate a positive or negative assessment, it only indicates that we have not yet evaluated the organization.
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Luminos Fund reported its largest program on its FY 2020 Form 990 as:
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
LUMINOS PROVIDES TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO THOUSANDS OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN, HELPING THEM TO CATCH UP TO GRADE LEVEL, REINTEGRATE INTO LOCAL SCHOOLS, AND PREPARE FOR LIFELONG LEARNING. L ... (More)
LUMINOS PROVIDES TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO THOUSANDS OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN, HELPING THEM TO CATCH UP TO GRADE LEVEL, REINTEGRATE INTO LOCAL SCHOOLS, AND PREPARE FOR LIFELONG LEARNING. LUMINOS WAS FOUNDED TO ENSURE CHILDREN EVERYWHERE GET A CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE JOYFUL LEARNING, ESPECIALLY THOSE DENIED AN EDUCATION BY CRISIS, POVERTY, AND DISCRIMINATION. OUR VISION IS OF A WORLD WHERE NO CHILD IS EVER DENIED THE CHANCE TO LEARN. TO DATE, LUMINOS HAS SET OVER 150,000 CHILDREN ACROSS ETHIOPIA, LIBERIA, AND LEBANON ON A PATH TO LIFELONG LEARNING. AS LUMINOS SCALES PIONEERING NEW APPROACHES TO BRING QUALITY EDUCATION TO CHILDREN IN THE GREATEST NEED, WE WORK TOGETHER WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENTS TO DRIVE SYSTEMS-LEVEL CHANGE. (Less)
Luminos Fund has earned a 100% for the Culture & Community beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of the organization's culture and connectedness to the community it serves.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableConstituent Feedback - Data Available - 100/100 ptsConstituent Feedback - Data Available - 100/100 pts
100% of beacon score
This organization reported that it is collecting feedback from the constituents and/or communities it serves. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations that engage in inclusive practices, such as collecting feedback from the people and communities they serve, may be more effective.
Who are the people you serve with your mission? Describe briefly.
Luminos serves the most marginalized children who have been denied an education due to poverty, crisis, or discrimination, and for whom conventional classrooms are inaccessible. Our program targets out-of-school children (boys and girls in relatively equal numbers) aged 8-11 from these profiles: (i) children who have never attended school; (ii) students who have dropped out of school before acquiring basic learning competencies; and (iii) children who have had their education disrupted by e.g., crisis or displacement. These are children from the lowest income-households, children the world largely assumes to be uneducable, and children at the greatest risk of succumbing to learning poverty (being unable to read a simple text by age 10).
How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Paper surveys, Community meetings or town halls, Other means
How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
With whom does your organization share the feedback you got from the people you serve?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our funders, Our community partners
How has asking for feedback from the people you serve changed your relationship with them or shifted power - over decisions, resources, rules or in other ways - to them?
Asking for feedback from the people we serve is always part of our process: it promotes collective ownership over our programs’ impact and outcomes and enables us to nimbly adjust for needs on the ground. The Luminos Fund’s approach is community driven. From the very beginning we work in lockstep with frontline community-based organizations, communities, and local governments to develop locally informed and contextually relevant solutions to identified challenges and programmatic gaps. Uniquely placed and trusted by both communities and governments, Luminos is able to rapidly adapt our programs to best serve the communities where we work and the education sector at large.
What challenges does your organization face in collecting feedback from the people you serve?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Briefly describe a recent change that your organization made in response to feedback from the people you serve.
Luminos regularly collects feedback from students and families to best support their needs. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted learning across the globe with subsequent effects on our students and the communities in which we operate. For example, we conducted a series of surveys with our students and parents just after schools shutdown which revealed that many of our families in Liberia were experiencing high levels of food insecurity during the crisis, slipping from two meals a day to one meal a day. As a result, we forayed into providing humanitarian assistance and nutritional support to families and students to mitigate the impact of COVID and lockdown. In addition to providing support for continued learning, we delivered bags of rice and other foodstuff to our students’ families.
Equity Practices - No Data Available - UnscoredEquity Practices - No Data Available - Unscored
This organization has not provided information regarding the Equity Practices it is presently implementing. As such, the organization has not earned a score on this metric. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations implementing effective equity policies and practices can enhance a nonprofit's decision-making, staff motivation, innovation, and effectiveness.
Luminos Fund has earned a 100% for the Leadership & Adaptability beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of the organization's leadership capacity, strategic thinking and planning, and ability to innovate or respond to changes in constituent demand/need or other relevant social and economic conditions to achieve the organization's mission.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableMission - 10/10 ptsMission - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization's mission
The Luminos Fund is dedicated to ensuring children everywhere have the chance to experience joyful learning, especially those denied an education by crisis, poverty, or discrimination, and for whom conventional classrooms are inaccessible. Our innovative approach to accelerated learning brings transformative education to the poorest corners of the world, helping thousands of out-of-school children to catch up to grade level, reintegrate into local schools, and prepare for lifelong learning. Our award-winning catch-up education program is one of the world’s leading innovations in K-12 education. In just ten months, we teach students to read, write, and do math – to learn how to learn – through a joyful, activity-based curriculum. To date, Luminos has enabled over 152,000 children across Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East to get back to school.
Vision - 10/10 ptsVision - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization’s vision.
Luminos exists to unlock the light of learning in every child. Our vision is of a world where no child is ever denied the chance to learn.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Goals - 20/20 ptsGoals - 20/20 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking and goal setting through sharing their most important strategic goals.
Goal One: Show: Deliver Luminos catch-up education programs to out-of-school children in multiple countries across Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.
Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.
Goal Two: Share: Promote broader adoption of Luminos education programs by government and other implementers.
Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.
Goal Three: Shift: Create advocacy platforms to champion our catch-up education model as a lever for universal primary enrolment and completion.
Goal Type: This goal reflects our commitment to further our advocacy work for our organization and or cause area.
Leadership Development - 15/15 ptsLeadership Development - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of investment in leadership development
In 2021, Luminos embarked on a multi-month people manager evaluation framework and leadership development training project with Rippleworks to design an improved talent and performance management system. In January 2022, we implemented the roll-out of the new system to our global team and are on the process of completing additional training on people management and hiring best practice.
Mobilizing for Mission - 15/15 ptsMobilizing for Mission - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of leadership through focusing externally and mobilizing resources for the mission.
Strategic Partnerships
Networks of Collective Impact Efforts
Thought Leadership
Raising Awareness
Community Building
External mobilization is a core facet of the Luminos Fund’s education efforts. Luminos partners with community-based organizations (implementing partners) as an effective strategy for scaled delivery and a powerful way to build on local capacity for reaching out-of-school children. In our classrooms, children are supported by Luminos-trained teachers: local young adults who we equip to deliver the pedagogy. Additionally, Luminos works closely with Ministries of Education to support governments to adopt and implement the Luminos model within mainstream schools. Luminos also collaborates with in-country and global partners and constituents to shift mindsets toward practical, highly scalable learning solutions, effectual policies, and high-return learning investments. To help coordinate this effort Luminos regularly hosts convenings and workshops, supports research, advises on national education policy, and is an active member of 14 leading international education associations/groups.
Adaptability Story - 30/30 ptsAdaptability Story - 30/30 pts
The nonprofit has an opportunity to tell the story of how the organization adapted to tremendous external changes in the last year.
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted learning across the globe. At the pandemic’s peak, 1.6 billion children worldwide were forced out of school due to school closures, threatening years of education progress. Today, millions are still unable to go to school with up to 24 million projected to drop out. Swift action is needed to help children reengage and catch-up on missed learning. The Luminos Fund’s education mission has never been more important. Uniquely placed and trusted by both communities and governments, Luminos rapidly adapted our programs in the last year to best serve the communities where we work and the education sector at large. We conducted a series of surveys with our students and parents just after schools shut down, which revealed that many of our families were experiencing high levels of food insecurity during the crisis. As a result, we forayed into providing humanitarian assistance and nutritional support to families and students to mitigate the impact of lockdowns. To support the learning needs of students during 2020-21 school closures, we adopted new ways of learning including distributing books, worksheets, and other learning materials to support at-home learning; conducting socially distanced outdoor micro-classes, and introducing tablet-based learning. Additionally, we deepened our engagement with relevant Ministries of Education, partnering in new ways. For instance, in Liberia, we partnered with government to conduct a nationwide psycho-social impact study to understand what emotional support children will need the most for returning to school, and advise on contextually relevant solutions. While schools have reopened across the globe, we remain committed to providing a safe learning environment for students and have equipped classrooms with wash stations and masks. Given the importance of the moment, we continue in our commitment to make Luminos operations as strong and effective as possible to support our mission and work.
Impact & Results
Accountability & Finance
Culture & Community
Leadership & Adaptability
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