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Is St. Labre Indian School a Legitimate Charity? What Donors Should Know

St. Labre Indian School’s identity, USCCB group-ruling explanation, FY2025 independent audit, and Charity Navigator status offer useful evidence for donors—along with limits to keep in mind.
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Yes. Available evidence supports that St. Labre Indian School Educational Association is a legitimate tax-exempt religious nonprofit. It identifies itself with EIN 81-0244542, explains that it receives 501(c)(3) status through the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) group ruling, and publishes independent audited financial statements. Its latest located audit, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, received an unmodified opinion. That supports confidence in the financial statements, but does not guarantee that fraud is impossible or independently verify the school’s reported outcomes.

What St. Labre Indian School does

St. Labre Indian School Educational Association is a Roman Catholic institution based in southeastern Montana. Its stated work includes tuition-free education, vocational and life-skills education, cultural programming, and outreach to Native American youth and families, primarily in Northern Cheyenne and Crow communities. It operates school campuses in Ashland, St. Xavier, and Pryor. Its FY2025 audited statements describe approximately 500 students across the three schools, along with a group home, day care, counseling, and assistance to students and families. St. Labre’s official website describes its programs.

Is it a 501(c)(3), and are donations tax-deductible?

St. Labre identifies its federal tax ID as 81-0244542 and says it receives 501(c)(3) status through a group ruling for the USCCB. According to St. Labre, subordinate organizations under that ruling may have their own tax IDs without appearing individually in the IRS search tool; the IRS annually issues a determination letter to the USCCB covering entities included in the USCCB Catholic Directory. This is St. Labre’s explanation of its status, supported by group-ruling documentation it posts—not a standalone IRS search result naming St. Labre.

The organization also says it does not file Form 990 because it is categorized as a religious organization or church and is not required to do so; it provides annual independent audits instead. The IRS’s Tax Exempt Organization Search offers tools to check eligibility for tax-deductible contributions and access Pub. 78 data, determination letters, revocation information, and Form 990-series returns. A missing individual listing should be considered alongside St. Labre’s stated group-ruling arrangement, rather than treated by itself as evidence of wrongdoing.

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What the latest audit shows—and what it cannot show

Baker Tilly’s report, dated November 14, 2025, covers the years ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024. The auditor gave an unmodified opinion, stating: “In our opinion, the accompanying financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Association as of June 30, 2025 and 2024, and the changes in its net assets and its cash flows for the years then ended in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.” The audit is independent evidence about the presentation of the financial statements under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP); it is not a guarantee that all material misstatements will be detected, nor an independent evaluation of educational impact.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, the audited statements report:

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FY2025 measure Amount
Total public support and revenue $73,802,049
Total expenses $63,832,117
Program services $30,524,006
Supporting services $33,308,111
— Fundraising, included in supporting services $30,762,693
— Management and general, included in supporting services $2,545,418
Total assets at June 30, 2025 $172,517,906
Total net assets at June 30, 2025 $157,606,673

The fundraising total warrants context. In the FY2025 functional-expense statement, fundraising includes $8,918,985 for supplies, books, materials and printing; $8,736,778 for postage; $2,476,981 for mailing-list acquisition; and $4,914,300 for donor gifts. These are reported expenses, not proof on their own of either waste or effectiveness. To assess them, review the full audited statements and notes, compare years and categories, and consider what the organization reports about its fundraising methods rather than relying on one overhead ratio.

Read the FY2025 audited financial statements, including the auditor’s opinion, statements of activities, functional expenses, and notes.

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Why Charity Navigator says “Not Rated”

Charity Navigator lists St. Labre Indian School Educational Association under EIN 81-0244542 as a 501(c)(3), but marks it Not Rated. Its profile says it cannot score the organization on Accountability because it has not received the public data required to evaluate that area. That is a lack of a score from this evaluator, not a finding that the charity is illegitimate or fraudulent. See Charity Navigator’s profile.

How to check before donating

  1. Match the recipient. Confirm the name St. Labre Indian School Educational Association and EIN 81-0244542 on the organization’s materials and on the payment or tax receipt.
  2. Review the group-ruling explanation. St. Labre’s financial information page explains its claimed USCCB group-ruling status and provides related documentation.
  3. Read the audit. Check the auditor’s opinion, the statements of activities and functional expenses, and the notes—not just the fundraising or program-services totals.
  4. Separate organization claims from independent findings. St. Labre’s homepage reports that 94% of its annual operating budget comes from donors, that 81% of graduates attend college or other post-secondary education, and that it provided $603,000 in scholarships “last year.” The page does not clearly establish the reporting year or methodology for all these figures, so treat them as organization-reported rather than independently verified outcomes.
  5. Use a verified giving route. Start at St. Labre’s official website and confirm the recipient name and EIN on the donation checkout or receipt.

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