The Student Excellence Foundation
The Student Excellence Foundation is a public charity, based in Wheaton, IL. IRS filing data is available from 2019 through 2025. As of 2025, the organization holds $222K in total assets.
Key facts about The Student Excellence Foundation
- EIN
- 36-3786044
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-EZ, 2025
- Total assets
- $222,050
Data from IRS Form 990-EZ, 2025; updated September 2026.
Financial Overview
From 2025 IRS Form 990-EZ · View filing
Total Assets
$222K
+16.7% YoY
Revenue
$169K
+20.5% YoY
Expenses
$139K
-36.6% YoY
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2021, annual grant giving ranged from $83K (2021) to $190K (2020). In 2021 it made 1 grant totaling $83K.
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Grant Size Distribution
1 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was in the $50–100K range: 1 grant of 1 (100%).
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for 2025.
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Metric | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $222,050 | $190,257 | $269,618 |
| Revenue | $169,162 | $140,427 | $119,442 |
| Expenses | $139,397 | $219,788 | $169,513 |
Data update history
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-EZ for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS February 12, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 13, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS February 7, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-EZ for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 9, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-EZ for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS February 8, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-EZ for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 13, 2025)
- Added Form 990-EZ for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 15, 2026)
Leadership & Key People
Officers and directors from IRS filings
The Student Excellence Foundation is led by Kara Murphy, Co-President since 2025 (on filings since 2021); 1 of 18 officers listed in 2025 is compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Kara Murphy
Co-President
Director → Co-Vice President, 2024
Co-Vice President → Co-President, 2025
On filings since 2021
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Karen Bohmer
Co-President
Director → Co-Vice President, 2024
Co-Vice President → Co-President, 2025
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kimberly McNamara
Director
On filings since 2019
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jim Vroman
Director
On filings since 2020
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ann Wakeman
Director
On filings since 2023
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Chris Dabovich
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jackie Attala
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Mary Pat Wesche
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Meghan Gualtieri
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Rob Kroehnke
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Sean McCumber
Director
New on the 2025 filing
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kathryn Sivak
Executive Di
New on the 2025 filing
20 hrs/week
$23K (2025)
Shannon Ensing
Past Co-Pres
Vice President → Co-President, 2024
Co-President → Past Co-Pres, 2025
On filings since 2019
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Steve Johnson
Past Co-Pres
Legal Counsel → Co-President, 2024
Co-President → Past Co-Pres, 2025
On filings since 2019
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jennifer Long
Co-Vice President
Director → Co-Vice President, 2025
On filings since 2023
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Terese Janik
Co-Vice President
Director → Co-Vice President, 2025
On filings since 2023
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Heidi Sleper
Secretary
Director → Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2024
15 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Xiangyu Zou
Treasurer
Director → Treasurer, 2025
On filings since 2024
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (15)
- Former: Jennifer Merck (2019–2024) — Imme. Past P
- Former: Mary Plepel (2019–2024) — Secretary
- Former: Brett Mathieson (2020–2024) — Treasurer
- Former: Kim Spayer (2023–2024) — Executive Di
- Former: Ken Knicker (2022–2023) — Director
- Former: Vicki Sebela (2019–2022) — Executive Di
- Former: Bob Hupp (2019–2021) — Assistant Se
- Former: Tom Paulsen (2021) — Director
- Former: Cynthia Woods (2019–2020) — Secretary
- Former: Andy Johnson (2019) — President
- Former: Barbara Intihar (2019) — Director
- Former: Don Longacre (2019) — Director
- Former: Jennifer Castino (2019) — Director
- Former: Mark Bridges (2019) — Treasurer
- Former: Pamela Paulsen (2019) — Past President
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $23K, to Kathryn Sivak (Executive Di).
Frequently asked questions about The Student Excellence Foundation
How large is The Student Excellence Foundation?
The Student Excellence Foundation reported $222K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-EZ. Its revenue that year was $169K.
Where does The Student Excellence Foundation operate?
The Student Excellence Foundation has awarded grants in Illinois.
What is The Student Excellence Foundation's EIN?
The Student Excellence Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 36-3786044. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings.
Here's the math on researching The Student Excellence Foundation by hand.
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