Public Narrative EIN 36-3759714

Public Narrative

EIN  36-3759714 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Chicago, IL Founded 1991
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Trains journalists and nonprofits to craft compelling stories for a free press and amplified community voices.
Leadership
Jhmira Alexander · President · $131K
Money in and out
$1.1M revenue, $677K expenses
Bottom line
86% program efficiency

Trains journalists and nonprofits to craft compelling stories for a free press and amplified community voices. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $1.1M in revenue, $677K in expenses, and $329K in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$1.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$677K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$329K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $410K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.86 Management & general $0.07 Fundraising $0.07
Program efficiency
86%
of spending reaches programs▲ +5% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
6.5mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▲ ×65 vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
+38%
revenue over expenses, this year▲ +333% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$1.1M
FY2024▲ +140%
Expenses
$677K
FY2024▲ +29%
Total assets
$512K
FY2024▲ +529%
Total liabilities
$182K
FY2024▲ +13%
Total revenue
$1.1M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$677K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$329K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$410K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$512K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B86%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 33
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 43
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $582K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Public narrative trains and supports journalists to produce accurate, ethical, and community-centered reporting. During the year, public narrative facilitated listening sessions that convene neighborhood leaders, community-based organizations, and media professionals to address issues such as diversity and inequality in media coverage.

$582Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CPublic Narrative
EINHdr · item D36-3759714
Principal addressHdr · item CChicago, IL
WebsiteHdr · item Jpublicnarrative.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1991
State of legal domicileHdr · item MIL
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFEducation (B99Z)
Ruling yearIRS BMFMar 1992

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a3
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b3
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
$131,492Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Jhmira Alexander’s $131K as President is at the 54th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3392 $1–10M 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
Jhmira Alexander$131,492$127,920$124,800$124,800$110,620
Jhmira Alexander$77,723

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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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$1.0M · 93%
Program service revenue$75K · 7%
Contributions & grants93%$1.0M
Program service revenue7%$75K
Investment income$29
— government grantsLn 1e$141K
Total revenueLn 12$1.1M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.86 Management & general $0.07 Fundraising $0.07
Program services86%$582K
Management & general7%$46K
Fundraising7%$49K
Total functional expensesLn 25$677K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$366K
Total assetsLn 16$512K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$182K
Total net assetsLn 32$329K
Months of cash on handcomputed6.5

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $366K · Operating expenses/yr $677K
6.5 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $582K · Total expenses $677K
86%
Management & General
Management & general $46K · Total expenses $677K
7%
Fundraising
Fundraising $49K · Total expenses $677K
7%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $48K · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $537K
$0.09 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.0M · Total revenue $1.1M
93%
Government reliance
Government grants $141K · Total revenue $1.1M
13%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $75K · Total revenue $1.1M
7%
Investment reliance
Investment income $29 · Total revenue $1.1M
0%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $75K · Total expenses $677K
11%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.1M · Prior year $453K
+140%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $475K · FY2024 $1.1M
+18%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $329K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.1M · Expenses $677K
+38%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $512K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $329K · Total assets $512K
64%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $512K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Jhmira Alexander · Reported title PRESIDENT · Highest reported compensation $131K · Total expenses $677K
19%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $345K · Total expenses $677K
51%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 86%
Overhead ratio 7%
Fundraising cost ratio 5%
Revenue growth 140%

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 · FY2024
See all 6 funders →
Grants paid · 1 grant · $53K · 2023–2023
Unitemized GrantFY2023$53,250

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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$453K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$543K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$545K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$288K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$475K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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