Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Mar 1994.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
91 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
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
13 people listed on the 990; $97K paid to officers and key staff.
Cecelia Kouma’s $96K as Executive Director is at the 86th percentile of top reported officer pay among 2216 $100K–1M 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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cecelia Kouma | $95,825 | $92,434 | $76,316 | $79,350 | $80,443 | $74,084 |
| Ishita Saxena-Dayal | $401 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ahmed Kenyatta Dents | $280 | — | — | — | — | — |
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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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
Empowers people of all ages to share stories through theatre, fostering growth and community.
Questions for Playwrights Project
Your first name shows with your question. Playwrights Project answers here, for everyone.
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Out of the Yard Arts in Corrections program 338 currently or formerly incarcerated adults wrote individual plays during 16 workshops writers scripts were performed for 2,038 audience members attended 54 performances inside facilities and out in the public, including live productions at SDSU, UC Irvine, and a Far South/Border North…
4b. Production Play Festival Our professional production of the 40th season of the Plays by Young Writers Festival presented winning scripts from our California Young Playwrights Contest. Two plays by writers age 16 to 17 were fully produced, and two plays by writers age 10-13 were staged readings.
Teaching Programs 836 students and 14 teachers across San Diego County received instruction in playwriting, strengthening skills in written and verbal communication and creative expression, and promoting theatre as a tool for education and community building. 31 individuals attended culminating performances of participants plays.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $815K | $740K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $3K | $2K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $959K | $789K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $87K | $99K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $873K | $690K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $0 | |||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $0 | |||
| Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3 | $0 | |||
| Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4 | $0 | |||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $92K | $86K | $1K | $4K |
| Pay of disqualified personsLn 6 | $0 | |||
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $378K | $340K | $23K | $15K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $0 | |||
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $22K | $19K | $1K | $1K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $40K | $36K | $2K | $2K |
| Management feesLn 11a | $0 | |||
| Legal feesLn 11b | $0 | |||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $2K | $2K | ||
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $0 | |||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $0 | |||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $11K | $11K | ||
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $5K | $4K | $129 | $837 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $13K | $12K | $403 | $310 |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $0 | |||
| RoyaltiesLn 15 | $0 | |||
| OccupancyLn 16 | $53K | $48K | $3K | $2K |
| TravelLn 17 | $12K | $11K | $45 | $33 |
| Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18 | $0 | |||
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $0 | |||
| InterestLn 20 | $0 | |||
| Payments to affiliatesLn 21 | $0 | |||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $764 | $764 | ||
| InsuranceLn 23 | $7K | $6K | $361 | $274 |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $83K | $78K | $3K | $2K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $0 | |||
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $718K | $652K | $38K | $28K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $535K | $718K | −$183K | $690K | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $860K | $775K | $85K | $873K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $859K | $465K | $394K | $788K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $432K | $397K | $36K | $394K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $485K | $419K | $66K | $359K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $460K | $429K | $31K | $293K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $535,330 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $535,330 across 8 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $718,149 across 30 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $788,536 assets, 12 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $689,930 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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