Faith-based, nonprofit & membership orgs
Books and taxes for Christian schools.
Tuition billed through Smart Tuition, financial aid awards, teacher payroll, and a capital campaign gift that has to stay apart from operating cash. Your own bookkeeper keeps it sorted, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August came in at $22,300 after expenses, mostly the fall tuition wave. The new science lab equipment from Nasco is logged as equipment, not classroom supplies.
- Smart Tuition depositTuition
- Founders annual fund giftAnnual fund
- Nasco lab equipmentClassroom equipment
- BJU Press curriculum orderCurriculum and textbooks
- Teacher payroll runStaff payroll
Why your books are different
A Christian school's books go wrong in the same recurring places.
A generalist sees tuition checks and a payroll run and calls it a school. Your revenue rides on an enrollment calendar, part of every class gets discounted through financial aid, and a building fund gift has to stay apart from the money that pays teachers. Miss that and the board cannot tell what the school actually has to work with.
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1
Financial aid gets netted against tuition instead of shown
A family awarded $3,000 off a $9,000 tuition bill often just shows up as a $6,000 payment, so nobody can see how much aid the school gave out that year or budget for it next year.
What we doBooks full tuition as revenue and financial aid as its own expense line, so the board sees both the sticker price and what the school actually gave away. -
2
A capital campaign gift pays for a field trip
A donor gives $10,000 toward the new gym and it lands in the same account as tuition and annual fund gifts. Without a separate line, that money can quietly cover a shortfall somewhere else instead of the gym it was given for.
What we doTags capital and building fund gifts the day they arrive, kept visible apart from tuition and operating giving. -
3
Summer payroll for ten-month teachers gets miscounted
Teachers on a ten-month schedule who are paid over twelve months look like they are being paid through the summer for no work, which confuses a monthly view of what the school is spending.
What we doFlags the summer pay spread so a quiet July or August payroll number reads as planned, not as a mistake. -
4
Coach and extracurricular stipends look like contractor pay
A coach or club sponsor paid a stipend on top of teaching duties, or a part-time coach hired just for a season, often gets paid outside payroll with no clear record of whether they are an employee or a contractor.
What we doKeeps stipend pay visible and flags anyone paid outside payroll so the school can settle worker classification before it becomes a habit. -
5
An enrollment deposit for next fall counts as this year's income
A deposit a family pays in the spring to hold a seat for the fall covers next year's tuition, not this year's, and counted the day it lands, it inflates the current year and understates the next.
What we doKeeps enrollment deposits tied to the year they apply to, so this year's number is not padded with next year's money.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a Christian school.
Set up once for how tuition, aid, and giving flow through the school. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- TuitionPayments processed through Smart Tuition or a similar tuition management service.
- Annual fund givingYearly appeal and giving day gifts that support operations.
- Capital and building giftsMoney given toward a specific building or campaign project.
- Fees and fundraisersRegistration fees, book fees, and school fundraiser proceeds.
Money out
- Teacher and staff payrollTen-month teachers paid over twelve, and support staff wages.
- Financial aid awardedThe dollar amount of tuition discounted, shown as its own cost.
- Curriculum and textbooksMaterials from vendors like BJU Press or Abeka.
- Classroom and lab equipmentScience, art, and technology equipment for classrooms.
- Facility costsUtilities, maintenance, and property insurance.
- Athletics and extracurricularsUniforms, coach stipends, and league fees.
- Accreditation and testing feesFees paid to the school's accrediting association and standardized testing vendors.
What we watch for you
- Aid as a share of tuition
How much of sticker-price tuition the school actually gives back through financial aid.
- Enrollment-linked revenue
Tuition income tracked against the current enrollment count, not last year's.
- Free-to-spend cash
Operating funds apart from capital gifts already earmarked for a building project.
- Per-student cost
What the school spends per enrolled student, useful before setting next year's tuition.
Ask Gus
Things Christian school administrators ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
It shows up. I book full tuition as income and aid as its own expense, so the board can see exactly what was given away, not just a smaller number with no explanation.
It depends on the role. If she works your schedule and uses your equipment, she is probably an employee, not a contractor. I flagged it so the accountant can weigh in before it becomes the usual way you pay coaches.
Not without the board redesignating it. I have that gift tagged as capital fund, kept apart from operating cash, so you always know what is actually free to spend.
The tax side
The tax side of running a Christian school.
Most of what matters here is keeping tuition, aid, and giving straight, and getting staff pay classified right.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- No standard annual filing for churches, but schools usually differA Christian school organized as its own nonprofit generally has annual filing obligations that a church does not. Whether that applies depends on how your school is structured, and preparing or filing that return is not part of this subscription.
- Worker classification for coaches and aidesA coach, aide, or club sponsor who works your schedule and uses your equipment is usually an employee, even if paid a stipend instead of a regular salary.
- Contractor 1099sA guest speaker, referee, or outside vendor not on payroll who is paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- Depreciation of equipment and improvementsClassroom technology, lab equipment, and facility improvements can factor into depreciation schedules, most relevant if the school has any taxable side activity such as facility rentals to outside groups.
Deductions Christian schools miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Curriculum and textbooks
- Classroom technology
- Science and art supplies
- Athletic uniforms and equipment
- Standardized testing fees
- Accreditation fees
- Bus and van maintenance
- Background check fees for staff
- Liability insurance
- Copier and office supplies
- Substitute teacher pay
- Playground and facility repairs
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A Christian school year, kept every month.
Enrollment sets the school's calendar, and the books track it all the way through. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Spring enrollment begins
Last year's records are wrapped up, and re-enrollment deposits for next fall start coming in, tagged to the year they actually apply to.
- April
Tuition and aid finalized
Whatever filing applies to your school's structure is ready to hand off, with tuition, financial aid, and payroll already sorted for the year.
- July
Midyear look before the fall wave
Where the budget stands before the fall tuition wave, and what next year's financial aid pool should look like based on this year's numbers.
- October
Before the annual fund push
Many schools run a fall giving day. Gus looks at how the annual fund is tracking against operating costs before the appeal goes out.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for Christian schools. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions Christian school administrators ask first.
Can Gus track financial aid as its own number instead of just lower tuition?
Yes. Full tuition is booked as income and every aid award as its own expense line, so the board sees both the total tuition value and what the school gave away.
We use Smart Tuition for tuition billing. Do we need to change anything?
No. Keep billing tuition the way you already do. Gus works from your bank and Smart Tuition statements and asks when a deposit needs to be split between years or accounts.
Our teachers are paid over twelve months even though the school year is ten. Will that confuse the monthly numbers?
No. Gus flags the summer pay spread so a quiet month during break reads as planned, not as a payroll mistake.
Do you prepare our school's Form 990 or similar annual filing?
No. That is not part of this subscription. Your books stay clean, categorized, and checked every month so whoever prepares that return is working from accurate numbers.
A donor gave money specifically for new gym equipment. How do we make sure it does not get spent elsewhere?
It gets tagged as a capital gift the day it arrives and stays visible apart from tuition and operating cash, so anyone looking at the books can see what is earmarked and what is free to spend.
Our books have not been reconciled since last spring. Can you catch us up?
Yes. Send the bank statements and tuition reports you have. Gus works through the backlog and the accountant checks it, and most schools know where they stand within a couple of weeks.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in faith-based, nonprofit & membership orgs
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Animal rescues & shelters
- Arts nonprofits
- Chambers of commerce
- Christian camps & retreat centers
- Church plants
- Community foundations
- Food banks & pantries
- Fraternal lodges & clubs
- Homeowners & civic associations
- Ministries & mission organizations
- Nonprofit thrift stores
- Private family foundations
- Private social clubs
- Trade & industry associations
- Veterans organizations
- Youth sports nonprofits
- Charter schools
- Small & mid-size churches
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever