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INSTITUTE FOR BETTER EDUCATION
TUCSON, AZ · EIN 237102832 · Form 990 · FY2021 · NTEE B82 · Education · Large ($10M-$50M) · ibescholarships.org
revenue
$28.9M
expenses
$24.1M
net assets
$37.2M
employees
10
program ratio
95%
mission · from form 990

HELP STUDENTS GAIN EQUAL ACCESS TO A QUALITY EDUCATION BY PROVIDING SCHOLARSHIPS TO ATTEND THE PRIVATE OR PAROCHIAL SCHOOL OF THEIR CHOICE.

profile · synthesized from sources

The Institute for Better Education (IBE) is an Arizona-based organization that provides private school scholarships to K-12 students and disabled preschoolers. It facilitates tax credit donations from individuals and corporations to fund these scholarships, aiming to remove financial obstacles to private education for Arizona families. IBE offers various scholarship programs based on eligibility criteria and financial need.

named programs · 5 · from sources

what they call their work

Disabled/Displaced Corporate Scholarship Program
Serves students with disabilities (via IEP, MET, or 504 Plan) or those with foster care history; funded by corporate tax credit donations
Low-Income Corporate Scholarship Program
Provides scholarships to low-income families (at or below 185% of federal reduced lunch guidelines) with children in private schools; funded by corporate tax credit donations
Original Individual Scholarship Program
Provides scholarships to K-12 students or disabled preschoolers attending private school; funded by individual taxpayer contributions via Arizona’s Private School Tax Credit program
PLUS/Switcher Scholarship Program
Offers scholarships to students transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or ESA programs, or entering kindergarten; requires prior eligibility or transition from another educational setting
Recommended Funds Program
Enables families to solicit friends, family, and other Arizona taxpayers to direct their state tax liability toward a specific student’s scholarship; 92% of donations awarded as scholarships
activities · 5 groups

what they do

  • Private School Tuition Tax Credit Scholarships 23 activities
    • Allocate scholarship funds based on donor recommendations and need
      Considers donor recommendations when awarding scholarships in compliance with state law and allocates general funds to support Arizona’s most economically disadvantaged students, with 92% of all donations awarded directly as scholarships.
    • Awarding Scholarships from Donations
      Awards 92% of all donations as scholarships to students, considering donor recommendations while complying with state law.
    • General Fund Scholarship Allocation
      Supports Arizona's most needy students through general fund allocations, ensuring 92% of all donations are awarded as scholarships.
    • General Scholarship Provision for Needy Students
      Supports Arizona's most needy students through general fund allocations, providing corporate scholarships to thousands of students across more than 300 private schools in Arizona, with 92% of all donations awarded as scholarships.
    • Provide private school scholarships through multiple programs
      Offers private school scholarships to K-12 and preschool students via several targeted programs: Original Individual (for students with MET/IEP), PLUS/Switcher (for students transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or out-of-state), Low-Income Corporate, and Disabled/Displaced Corporate (for students with disabilities or foster care history), serving thousands of students across over 300 private schools in Arizona.
    • Providing Disabled/Displaced Corporate Private School Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to students with disabilities (via IEP, MET, or 504 Plan) or those with a history in the Arizona foster care system.
    • Providing Disabled/Displaced Corporate Program Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to students with disabilities (via IEP, MET, or 504 Plan) or those with a history in the Arizona foster care system through the Disabled/Displaced Corporate program, awarding over $128,000 in a recent period.
    • Providing Low-Income Corporate Private School Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to low-income full-time K-12 or preschool students who meet state-mandated income requirements and transfer criteria.
    • Providing Low-Income Corporate Program Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to low-income full-time K-12 or preschool students who meet state-mandated income requirements and transfer criteria through the Low-Income Corporate program, awarding over $1.8 million in a recent period.
    • Providing Original Individual Private School Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students with an Arizona public school MET or IEP.
    • Providing Original Individual Program Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students with an Arizona public school MET or IEP through the Original Individual program, awarding over $3.4 million in a recent period.
    • Providing PLUS/Switcher Private School Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students who are transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or out-of-state schools, or who have prior scholarship eligibility.
    • Providing PLUS/Switcher Program Scholarships
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students who are transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or out-of-state schools, or who have prior scholarship eligibility, through the PLUS/Switcher program, awarding over $2.4 million in a recent period.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Disabled/Displaced Corporate Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to students with disabilities (via IEP, MET, or 504 Plan) or those with a history in the Arizona foster care system through the Disabled/Displaced Corporate program, awarding over $128,000 in Disabled/Displaced Scholarships to students across various income levels.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Disabled/Displaced Corporate Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to students with disabilities (via IEP, MET, or 504 Plan) or those with a history in the Arizona foster care system through the Disabled/Displaced Corporate program. In one reporting period, awarded $46,775.38 to students at or below 185% of federal reduced lunch guidelines and $81,692.54 to students between 186% and 342% of federal reduced lunch guidelines.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Low-Income Corporate Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to low-income full-time K-12 or preschool students who meet state-mandated income requirements and transfer criteria through the Low-Income Corporate program, awarding over $1.8 million in Corporate Scholarships to students across various income levels.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Low-Income Corporate Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to low-income full-time K-12 or preschool students who meet state-mandated income requirements and transfer criteria through the Low-Income Corporate program. In one reporting period, awarded $900,801.90 to students at or below 185% of federal reduced lunch guidelines and $987,651.16 to students between 186% and 342% of federal reduced lunch guidelines.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Original Individual Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students with an Arizona public school MET or IEP through the Original Individual program, awarding over $3.4 million in Original Scholarships to students across various income levels.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (Original Individual Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students with an Arizona public school MET or IEP through the Original Individual program. In one reporting period, awarded $1,441,449.94 to students at or below 185% of federal reduced lunch guidelines and $1,987,688.24 to students between 186% and 342% of federal reduced lunch guidelines.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (PLUS/Switcher Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students who are transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or out-of-state schools, or who have prior scholarship eligibility, through the PLUS/Switcher program. In one reporting period, awarded $1,077,396.54 to students at or below 185% of federal reduced lunch guidelines and $1,358,666.52 to students between 186% and 342% of federal reduced lunch guidelines.
    • Providing Private School Scholarships (PLUS/Switcher Program)
      Provides private school scholarships to full-time K-12 or preschool students who are transferring from public, charter, homeschool, or out-of-state schools, or who have prior scholarship eligibility, through the PLUS/Switcher program, awarding over $2.4 million in PLUS Scholarships to students across various income levels.
    • Supporting Needy Students through General Fund Allocations
      Supports Arizona's most needy students through general fund allocations.
    • Supporting Needy Students through General Funds
      Supports Arizona's most needy students through general fund allocations.
  • Annual Scholarship Application Processing 6 activities
    • Manage scholarship application and disbursement cycle
      Releases scholarship applications annually in February for the following school year, processes direct family applications for financial aid or Recommended Funds, and disburses awards monthly starting July 1st (with Recommended Funds distributed between the 1st and 15th of each month except June) until funds are depleted.
    • Processing and Disbursing Scholarship Funds
      Manages the application process for scholarships annually in February and disburses Financial Aid awards monthly starting July 1st and Recommended Funds to schools monthly between the 1st and 15th, excluding June.
    • Processing and Distributing Scholarship Funds
      Manages the application process for scholarships annually in February, considers donor recommendations, and disburses financial aid awards monthly starting July 1st and recommended funds to schools monthly between the 1st and 15th (except June).
    • Processing and Distributing Scholarship Funds
      Manages the application process for scholarships annually in February and distributes financial aid awards monthly starting July 1st, and disburses Recommended Funds to schools between the 1st and 15th of each month (except June), ensuring 92% of all donations are awarded as scholarships.
    • Processing and Distributing Scholarship Funds
      Releases scholarship applications annually in February and distributes Financial Aid awards monthly starting July 1st until funds are depleted. Disburses Recommended Funds to schools monthly between the 1st and 15th, except June. The organization awards 92% of all donations as scholarships to students, considering donor recommendations while complying with state law.
    • Scholarship Application and Disbursement Management
      Manages the scholarship application process, releasing applications annually in February, and disburses Financial Aid awards monthly starting July 1st and Recommended Funds to schools monthly between the 1st and 15th (excluding June).
  • ESA Program Vendor Services 4 activities
    • Administer Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program
      Administers Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program, enabling eligible families to use public funds for private school tuition, online education, tutoring, and other approved educational expenses.
    • Administering Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA)
      Administers the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program for eligible Arizona families, enabling the use of public funds for private school tuition, online education, tutoring, and other approved educational expenses.
    • Administering Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA)
      Administers the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program for eligible Arizona families, allowing them to use public funds for private school tuition, online education, tutoring, and other approved educational expenses.
    • Administering Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA)
      Administers the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program for eligible Arizona families, enabling the use of public funds for private school tuition, online education, tutoring, and other approved educational expenses.
  • Financial Oversight & Compliance Management 1 activity
    • Conduct annual independent audits
      Undergoes an annual independent audit as required by state law and board policy to ensure financial accountability and compliance.
  • Uncategorized 2 activities
    • Corporate Scholarship Provision
      Provides corporate scholarships to thousands of students across more than 300 private schools in Arizona, while complying with state law that prohibits awards based solely on donor recommendations.
    • Report scholarship award amounts by program and income level
      Tracks and reports annual scholarship awards across program types (Original, PLUS, Corporate, Disabled/Displaced) and income tiers (at or below 185%, and between 186%–342% of federal reduced lunch guidelines), with total awards exceeding $7 million across all categories.
financials · form 990 · fy2021
revenue
Total revenue$28.87M
Contributions & grants$28.67M99%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$198K1%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$24.10M
Program expenses95%
Admin / overhead2%
Fundraising3%
Salaries & benefits$677K
Grants paid out$22.31M
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$37.19M
Cash$29.81M
Investments$6.62M
Liabilities$2K
Net assets$37.18M
Liquid reserves18.1 mo
3 years on record · 2019–2021 · YoY revenue -0.4%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2021

who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
KIMBERLY KIRSCHNER Executive Dir. 40 $133K
board members · 7
  • AARON JANSEN — Director
  • ERIC DOWDLE — Director
  • INGA BRCHAN — Director
  • JACK SCHULL — President
  • KATRINA POWELL — Director
  • RUSTY ROLLINS — Secretary
  • TROY RUBOYIANES — Director
relationships · 11

who they work with

  • Arizona Department of Revenue Government — Source for information on Arizona tax credits.
  • Arizona Department of Revenue Government — Submits corporate donor applications for tax credit approval.
  • Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account Government — Administers the ESA program in partnership with state-established public funding mechanism for Arizona students.
  • Association of Christian Schools International – Rocky Mountain Region Network — Eric Dowdle chairs the Accreditation Commission for this regional network, indicating IBE’s indirect affiliation through board expertise in Christian school accreditation.
  • Casas Christian K-8 School Partner — Eric Dowdle serves as Principal at Casas Christian K-8 School, creating an institutional connection to IBE through board membership.
  • Desert Christian Schools Partner — Aaron Jansen serves as COO and Junior High Principal at Desert Christian Schools, linking the institution to IBE through board leadership.
  • Elements City Church Partner — Jack Schull, IBE Board Chairman, serves as Lead Pastor at Elements City Church, indicating a leadership affiliation between the individual and the organization.
  • Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation Partner — Katrina Powell serves as Development Manager for Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation while also serving on IBE’s Board of Trustees, indicating a cross-sector professional connection.
  • Pusch Ridge Christian Academy Partner — Inga Brchan’s children attend Pusch Ridge Christian Academy, where she is involved in school activities, and Elizabeth Mehl teaches Spanish and serves on the school board, indicating organizational ties to IBE through board members.
  • State of Arizona Government — Administers the Private School Tax Credit program in which IBE participates.
  • ibefoundation.org Partner — Sister tax credit organization that assists low-income students at Arizona private, public, and charter schools.