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Essential Learning Institute

  • Catasauqua, PA
  • Tax-exempt since Feb. 1964
  • EIN: 23-2745582

Organization summary

Type of Nonprofit

Designated as a Organizations for any of the following purposes: religious, educational, charitable, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition (as long as it doesn't provide athletic facilities or equipment), or the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.

Donations to this organization are tax deductible.

Details

According to its June 2025 tax filing, this nonprofit:

Operated a school
Organization is a school. Details are reported on Schedule E.
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Organizations must report loans, grants or business transactions with interested parties, which may include key employees and officers, their family members and any businesses in which they hold a controlling interest. These transactions must be reported on Schedule L.

Summary charts: organization finances over time

Revenue
$53.1k (2025)

Expenses
$53.6k (2025)

Total Assets
$7.56k (2025)

Total Liabilities
$21.8k (2025)

Source: Form 990 tax filings from 2011 to 2025

Tax Filings by Year

Form 990 is an information return that most organizations claiming federal tax-exempt status must file yearly with the IRS. Nonprofit Explorer has IRS digitized Form 990 data for filings processed in 2012 and later. If this organization filed an amended return, it may not be reflected below. Duplicate download links may indicate a resubmission or amendment to this organization's original return. Form 990 data is from the IRS.

Fiscal Year Ending June
2025

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$53,080
Expenses
$53,610
Net Income
-$530
Net Assets
-$14,239
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $7,064
13.3%
Program Services $46,016
86.7%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $12,116
22.6%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $0
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $7,560
Total Liabilities $21,799
Net Assets -$14,239
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $12,116 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Oct. 14, 2025

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2024

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$84,497
Expenses
$95,783
Net Income
-$11,286
Net Assets
-$13,709
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $34
0.0%
Program Services $84,463
100.0%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $41,778
43.6%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $0
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $16,195
Total Liabilities $29,904
Net Assets -$13,709
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $41,778 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Nov. 25, 2024

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2023

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$86,437
Expenses
$84,696
Net Income
$1,741
Net Assets
-$2,423
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $45
0.1%
Program Services $86,392
99.9%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $34,329
40.5%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $0
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $14,300
Total Liabilities $16,723
Net Assets -$2,423
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $34,329 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Jan. 10, 2024

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2022

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$109,449
Expenses
$107,636
Net Income
$1,813
Net Assets
-$4,164
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $86
0.1%
Program Services $109,246
99.8%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $117
0.1%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $66,065
61.4%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $681
0.6%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $8,920
Total Liabilities $13,084
Net Assets -$4,164
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $66,065 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Oct. 13, 2023

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2021

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$121,239
Expenses
$102,069
Net Income
$19,170
Net Assets
-$5,977
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $26
0.0%
Program Services $121,213
100.0%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $54,570
53.5%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $6,487
6.4%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $8,853
Total Liabilities $14,830
Net Assets -$5,977
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $54,570 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Oct. 31, 2023

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2020

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$105,325
Expenses
$92,544
Net Income
$12,781
Net Assets
-$25,147
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $14,342
13.6%
Program Services $90,983
86.4%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $0
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $65,268
70.5%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $16,390
Total Liabilities $41,537
Net Assets -$25,147

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2019

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$88,234
Expenses
$101,122
Net Income
-$12,888
Net Assets
-$37,928
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $0
Program Services $88,234
100%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $48,761
48.2%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $0
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $17,581
Total Liabilities $55,509
Net Assets -$37,928
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $51,601 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Sept. 25, 2019

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2018

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$83,535
Expenses
$114,471
Net Income
-$30,936
Net Assets
-$25,040
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $3
0.0%
Program Services $83,532
100.0%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $56,838
49.7%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $3,000
2.6%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $33,288
Total Liabilities $58,328
Net Assets -$25,040
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $56,838 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0
Sally Sheldrake (Trustee) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Oct. 29, 2018

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2017

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$103,601
Expenses
$106,607
Net Income
-$3,006
Net Assets
$5,896
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $644
0.6%
Program Services $102,957
99.4%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $56,337
52.8%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $850
0.8%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $61,303
Total Liabilities $55,407
Net Assets $5,896
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President) $56,338 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretarytreasurer) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on April 6, 2018

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2016

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$108,801
Expenses
$124,013
Net Income
-$15,212
Net Assets
$8,902
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $1,604
1.5%
Program Services $107,197
98.5%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $56,763
45.8%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $551
0.4%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $72,421
Total Liabilities $63,519
Net Assets $8,902
Other
Operated a school
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (President Si) $56,763 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretary/Tr) $0 $0 $0
Robert Salzman Dec'd (President Un) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Oct. 12, 2016

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML
PDF (2 of 2)

Fiscal Year Ending June
2015

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$118,066
Expenses
$101,019
Net Income
$17,047
Net Assets
$24,113
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $800
0.7%
Program Services $117,266
99.3%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $52,403
51.9%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $1,019
1.0%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $33,102
Total Liabilities $8,989
Net Assets $24,113
Other
Operated a school
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (Advisor) $51,803 $0 $0
Robert Salzman (President) $600 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretary) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Nov. 12, 2015

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2014

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$101,385
Expenses
$112,213
Net Income
-$10,828
Net Assets
$7,064
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $13,333
13.2%
Program Services $88,052
86.8%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $0
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $54,573
48.6%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $23,540
Total Liabilities $16,476
Net Assets $7,064
Other
Operated a school
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Amy Highland (Advisor) $47,523 $0 $0
Robert Salzman (President) $7,050 $0 $0
Jessica Parnell (Secretary) $0 $0 $0

Document Links

990
Filed on Feb. 16, 2015

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending June
2013

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$80,227
Expenses
$101,301
Net Income
-$21,074
Net Assets
$17,893
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $0
Program Services $80,227
100%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $0
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $52,823
52.1%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $27,732
Total Liabilities $9,839
Net Assets $17,893

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2012

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$104,581
Expenses
$136,346
Net Income
-$31,765
Net Assets
$38,963
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $0
Program Services $104,581
100%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $58,884
43.2%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $600
0.4%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $40,519
Total Liabilities $1,556
Net Assets $38,963

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2011

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$142,245
Expenses
$77,857
Net Income
$64,388
Net Assets
$70,727
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $0
Program Services $142,245
100%
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $0
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $21,287
27.3%
Professional Fundraising Fees $0
Other Salaries and Wages $2,630
3.4%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $78,326
Total Liabilities $7,599
Net Assets $70,727

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2010

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2009

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2008

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2007

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2006

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2005

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2004

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2003

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending June
2001

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

About This Data

What Is This Data?

Nonprofit Explorer includes summary data for nonprofit tax returns and full Form 990 documents, in both PDF and digital formats.

The summary data contains information processed by the IRS during the 2012-2019 calendar years; this generally consists of filings for the 2011-2018 fiscal years, but may include older records. This data release includes only a subset of what can be found in the full Form 990s.

In addition to the raw summary data, we link to PDFs and digital copies of full Form 990 documents wherever possible. This consists of separate releases by the IRS of Form 990 documents processed by the agency, which we update regularly.

We also link to copies of audits nonprofit organizations that spent $750,000 or more in Federal grant money in a single fiscal year since 2016. These audits are copied from the Federal Audit Clearinghouse.

Which Organizations Are Here?

Every organization that has been recognized as tax exempt by the IRS has to file Form 990 every year, unless they make less than $200,000 in revenue and have less than $500,000 in assets, in which case they have to file form 990-EZ. Organizations making less than $50,000 don’t have to file either form but do have to let the IRS they’re still in business via a Form 990N "e-Postcard."

Nonprofit Explorer has organizations claiming tax exemption in each of the 27 subsections of the 501(c) section of the tax code, and which have filed a Form 990, Form 990EZ or Form 990PF. Taxable trusts and private foundations that are required to file a form 990PF are also included. Small organizations filing a Form 990N "e-Postcard" are not included in this data.

Types of Nonprofits

There are 27 nonprofit designations based on the numbered subsections of section 501(c) of the tax code. See the list »

Get the Data

For those interested in acquiring the original data from the source, here’s where our data comes from:

  • Raw filing data. Includes EINs and summary financials as structured data.
  • Exempt Organization profiles. Includes organization names, addresses, etc. You can merge this with the raw filing data using EIN numbers.
  • Form 990 documents. Prior to 2017, these documents were obtained and processed by Public.Resource.org and ProPublica. Bulk PDF downloads since 2017 are available from the IRS.
  • Form 990 documents as XML files. Includes complete filing data (financial details, names of officers, tax schedules, etc.) in machine-readable format. Only available for electronically filed documents. Electronic data released prior to October 2021 is also available through Amazon Web Services.
  • Audits. PDFs of single or program-specific audits for nonprofit organizations that spent $750,000 or more in Federal grant money in a single fiscal year. Available for fiscal year 2015 and later.

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About Nonprofit Explorer

Nonprofit Explorer

Browse millions of annual returns filed by tax-exempt organizations with ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer. See details like executive compensation, revenue, expenses and more. Search for an organization or a person, or search the full text of filings.

By Andrea Suozzo, Alec Glassford, Ash Ngu and Brandon Roberts.

Design by Jeff Frankl. Additional development by Ken Schwencke, Mike Tigas, and Sisi Wei.

E-file viewer adapted from IRS e-File Viewer by Ben Getson. Code for scraping audit documents adapated from Govwiki.

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