First Literacy INC EIN 04-2997446 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

First Literacy INC FY2023 filing

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Funds new ideas to improve adult literacy and transform lives. For fiscal year 2023 it reported $491K in revenue, $753K in expenses, and $984K in net assets.Pt I

Founded
1988
Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Education
Location
Boston, MA
Website
www.firstliteracy.org
Filings
5 on file (2020–2023)
Revenue
$491KFY2023
Expenses
$753K
Net assets
$984K
People
18
Filings
5
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  04-2997446 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Boston, MA Founded 1988
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →
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Size
$100K–1M
What they do
Funds new ideas to improve adult literacy and transform lives.
Leadership
Theresa B Witherell · Executive Director · $150K
Money in and out
$491K revenue, $753K expenses
Bottom line
76% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2023
Total revenue
$491K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$753K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$984K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$262K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.10 Fundraising $0.14
Program efficiency
76%
of spending reaches programs
Operating runway
17.4mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate
Surplus margin
-53%
revenue over expenses, this year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2023 · Form 990
Revenue
$491K
FY2023▼ -20%
Expenses
$753K
FY2023▲ +3%
Total assets
$1.1M
FY2023▼ -11%
Total liabilities
$145K
FY2023▲ +10%
Total revenue
$491K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$753K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$984K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$262K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$1.1M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B76%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 316
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 416

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CFirst Literacy INC
EINHdr · item D04-2997446
Principal addressHdr · item CBoston, MA
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.firstliteracy.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1988
State of legal domicileHdr · item MMA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFEducation (B190)
Ruling yearIRS BMFMar 1988

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a16
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b16
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2022); the FY2023 filing did not itemize Part VII
Executive Director
$150,000Pt VII · Sec A
Chairman
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Ex Officio Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Theresa B Witherell’s $174K as Executive Director is at the 97th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1612 $100K–1M education nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Theresa B Witherell$174,387$152,749$150,000$148,674$123,088$50,000
Skye M Morrison$64,271

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $568K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2022.
01

Professional development workshops provide adult educators with information and resources on evidence-based teaching methodology and curriculam design, cross-cultural issues, and student assessment approaches relevant to the adult education classroom.

$568Kprogram expense
02

Scholarships and support for adult learners who have successfully completed basic studies in an abe program and are pursuing college or technical education are eligible for a first literacy scholarship.

Pt IX · col B
03

Our first literacy lab initiative offers small grants to adult basic education programs to improve practice and to strengthen programs. The flexibility of these grants allows programs to meet emerging student needs in a timely fashion.

Pt IX · col B

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$270K · 55%
Other revenue$194K · 40%
Investment income$26K · 5%
Contributions & grants55%$270K
Other revenue40%$194K
Investment income5%$26K
— government grantsLn 1e$62K
Total revenueLn 12$491K

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.10 Fundraising $0.14
Program services76%$568K
Management & general10%$76K
Fundraising14%$109K
Total functional expensesLn 25$753K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$92K
Total assetsLn 16$1.1M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$145K
Total net assetsLn 32$984K
Months of cash on handcomputed1.5

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2023 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $1.1M · Operating expenses/yr $753K
17.4 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $568K · Total expenses $753K
76%
Management & General
Management & general $76K · Total expenses $753K
10%
Fundraising
Fundraising $109K · Total expenses $753K
14%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $128K · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $394K
$0.32 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $270K · Total revenue $491K
55%
Government reliance
Government grants $62K · Total revenue $491K
13%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $491K
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $26K · Total revenue $491K
+5%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $753K
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $491K · Prior year $616K
-20%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $984K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $491K · Expenses $753K
-53%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $1.1M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $984K · Total assets $1.1M
87%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $1.0M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $1.1M
89%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Theresa B Witherell · Reported title EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $150K · Total expenses $753K
20%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $417K · Total expenses $753K
55%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 76%
Overhead ratio 10%
Fundraising cost ratio 40%
Revenue growth -20%
Investment management fee ratio 0.9%
Accounting fee ratio 5%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$1K
Grants paid · 9 grants · $297K · 2019–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$53,614
The Literacy Project INCMA · FY2024$11,125
Unitemized GrantFY2022$74,125
Unitemized GrantFY2021$52,500
Charlestown Adult EducationMA · FY2021$15,000
Mujeres Unidas Avanzando INCMA · FY2021$15,000
The Literacy Project INCMA · FY2021$7,500
Unitemized GrantFY2020$42,500
Unitemized GrantFY2019$25,300

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2024$797K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$491K revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$616K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$654K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$459K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2023IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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