To transform the drama of real life into memoir and documentary art to foster appreciation for our unique and shared experience. The organization's mission grows out of the conviction that learning through one another's personal experiences is a compelling way to understand our history, our world and its diverse cultures. Through our festival, storyslams and other programming, First Person Arts has showcased the work of hundreds of artists nationwide, reaching across cultures and communities to attract a broad and diverse audience, and has played an important role in exploring and celebrating the richness of the mixed heritage and shared history of everyday americans.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
73¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$121K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

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FY2024 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $39K a year · 5% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 2 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
73%
of spending
Fine: 73% of spending went to programs; 65% to 75%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$121K
to officers and key staff · 11% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 11% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
1 mo
of spending, in cash
Fine: 1.4 months of spending in cash; 1 to 3.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
12
named funders · $446K
Looks good: 12 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$164K
50% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 50% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
9
of 10 voting members
Looks good: 9 of 10 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$1.1M
+40% vs prior year
Spent
$1.1M
To programs
73%
Net assets
$167K
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$1.1M
FY2024▲ +40%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$655K
FY2021$753K
FY2022$728K
FY2023$768K
FY2024$1.1M
Expenses
$1.1M
FY2024▲ +62%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$468K
FY2021$781K
FY2022$765K
FY2023$677K
FY2024$1.1M
Net assets
$167K
FY2024▼ -11%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$59K
FY2021$117K
FY2022$80K
FY2023$186K
FY2024$167K

From the FY2024 Form 990 (year ending August 2024) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Jan 2001.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

73 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 73% · $803K Management & general 12% · $131K Fundraising 15% · $164K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

14 people listed on the 990; $121K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2023); the FY2024 filing did not itemize Part VII
Executive Director
$120,611Pt VII · Sec A
Chairman of the Board (until Aug24)
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice Chair
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member (until Nov23)
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Jamie Brunson’s $121K as Executive Director is at the 48th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3924 $1–10M arts & culture 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 · 1 named individual · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Jamie Brunson$120,611$102,347$99,000$96,272$104,355

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.

See First Person Arts INC executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Transforms real-life stories into memoir and documentary art.

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Provided by the organization

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1 program · $803K · in their own filed words · FY2023
01

The organization seeks to capture and preserve compelling, first-hand experiences and stories from diverse individuals, groups and cultures to develop and present works of art

$803Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
See all 12 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$1.1M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$893K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$185K
Investment incomeLn 3$874
Money outPt IX
$1.1M
Ln 25
Programscol B$803K
Managementcol C$131K
Fundraisingcol D$164K
Owns and owesPt X
$167K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$125K
Total assetsLn 16$330K
LiabilitiesLn 26$164K
PeoplePt VI, VII
14
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a10
IndependentVI 1b9
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$893K
Government grantsLn 1e$487K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$185K
Investment incomeLn 3$874
Total revenueLn 12$1.1M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$125K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$125K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$0
Total assetsLn 16$330K
LiabilitiesLn 26$164K
Net assetsLn 32$167K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 55
VolunteersI 60
Fiscal year endsHeaderAugust
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$219K$125K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$0$0
Total assetsLn 16$247K$330K
LiabilitiesLn 26$61K$164K
Net assetsLn 32$186K$167K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$126K$50K$19K$57K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$389K$300K$23K$66K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$34K$30K$1K$3K
Payroll taxesLn 10$43K$30K$3K$10K
Accounting feesLn 11c$50K$0$50K$0
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$289K$269K$0$20K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$51K$51K$0$0
Office expensesLn 13$50K$35K$13K$2K
Information technologyLn 14$1K$754$280$46
OccupancyLn 16$28K$20K$7K$1K
TravelLn 17$24K$9K$10K$4K
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$505$505$0$0
InterestLn 20$7K$5K$2K$301
InsuranceLn 23$5K$3K$1K$209
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.1M$803K$131K$164K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest Viewing $1.1M$1.1M−$20K$167K 990 PDF
FY2023 $768K$677K$91K$186K 990 PDF
FY2022 $728K$765K−$37K$80K 990 PDF
FY2021 $753K$781K−$28K$117K 990 PDF
FY2020 $655K$468K$187K$59K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $1,078,122 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $674,861$892,534
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $92,869$184,714
I-10 Investment income$874
I-11 Other revenue$0
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $767,730$1,078,122
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paid$0
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $284,431$592,915
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $392,401$504,912
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $676,832$1,097,827
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year $90,898−$19,705
Part VI · Governance 9 of 10 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body10
VI-1b Independent voting members9
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,078,122 across 6 lines filed
VIII-1e Government grants$487,319
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$405,215
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$892,534
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$184,714
VIII-3 Investment incomeUnrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $874$874
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $184,714 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $874$1,078,122
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,097,827 across 14 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $50,348 · Management $18,880 · Fundraising $56,643$125,871
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $300,257 · Management $23,160 · Fundraising $66,001$389,418
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $29,714 · Management $1,222 · Fundraising $3,276$34,212
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $30,056 · Management $3,417 · Fundraising $9,941$43,414
IX-11c Accounting feesPrograms $0 · Management $49,936 · Fundraising $0$49,936
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $268,925 · Management $0 · Fundraising $19,749$288,674
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $50,921 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$50,921
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $34,773 · Management $13,086 · Fundraising $2,129$49,988
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $754 · Management $280 · Fundraising $46$1,080
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $19,677 · Management $7,304 · Fundraising $1,189$28,170
IX-17 TravelPrograms $8,809 · Management $10,246 · Fundraising $4,500$23,555
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $505 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$505
IX-20 InterestPrograms $4,980 · Management $1,849 · Fundraising $301$7,130
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $3,460 · Management $1,284 · Fundraising $209$4,953
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $803,179 · Management $130,664 · Fundraising $163,984$1,097,827
Part X · Balance sheet $330,207 assets, 11 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $218,522$125,248
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $28,448$201,798
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $0$3,161
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $0$0
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $246,970$330,207
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $3,185$23,336
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $60,718$163,660
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $53,752$136,547
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $132,500$30,000
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $186,252$166,547
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $246,970$330,207
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $166,547 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$1,078,122
XI-2 Total expenses$1,097,827
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$19,705
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$186,252
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$166,547

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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