Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Mar 1976.
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
23 people listed on the 990; $1.1M paid to officers and key staff.
Cisa Keller’s $202K as President and CEO is at the 46th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3122 $10–100M human services 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 · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbara Yates | $118,588 | $239,319 | $213,487 | $205,876 | $198,912 | $192,009 |
| Cisa Keller | $202,162 | $143,218 | $131,811 | $123,424 | $114,581 | $106,211 |
| Mark Cross | $106,185 | $191,141 | $182,862 | $175,097 | $170,093 | — |
| E Mark Cross | — | — | — | — | — | $168,380 |
| Jonathan May | $134,986 | $129,361 | $123,449 | $111,639 | $100,152 | — |
| Candace Yates | $116,733 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Diane Haulcy | — | — | — | $114,413 | $108,646 | — |
| Wendy Nielsen | $112,808 | $103,824 | — | — | — | — |
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
Advocates for policies and funding to improve the quality, affordability, and literacy standards of early childhood education and care in Minnesota.
Questions for Think Small
Your first name shows with your question. Think Small answers here, for everyone.
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Strengthen FamiliesThink Small recognizes that supporting families is critical to supporting their children's early learning and education. We administered 4,700+ Early Learning Scholarships whereby 57% served children priority groups, living in homelessness, foster care, with teen parents, and other unique or challenging circumstances.
Prepare ProvidersWe take care for early childhood educators so they can take care for children. From flexible, affordable professional development to expert coaching, business tools, and financial supports, we provide what educators need to start or strengthen their practice and sustain their programs.
Catalyzing ChangeWe lead so early childhood education can succeed not just for educators and families, but for the broader community. Our leadership spans policy, research, and practice. We advocate for statewide reforms, expand access to child care in underserved areas, and publish new thought-leadership materials through Redleaf Press.
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 | $498K | $749K |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $4.5M | $4.4M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $576K | $554K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $10.6M | $8.7M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $3.3M | $2.8M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $7.3M | $6.0M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $8.9M | $8.9M | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $1.3M | $1.3M | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $365K | $74K | $248K | $42K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $6.3M | $5.6M | $488K | $240K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $236K | $183K | $48K | $5K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $471K | $357K | $103K | $12K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $484K | $413K | $52K | $20K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $26K | $26K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $62K | $62K | ||
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $240K | $240K | ||
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $37K | $37K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $54K | $54K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $1.3M | $1.1M | $206K | $6K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $324K | $317K | $2K | $5K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $254K | $222K | $27K | $5K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $736K | $634K | $83K | $19K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $140K | $112K | $28K | |
| TravelLn 17 | $51K | $40K | $295 | $10K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $339K | $310K | $26K | $4K |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $262K | $247K | $15K | |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $74K | $60K | $14K | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $334K | $316K | $15K | $4K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $22.2M | $20.3M | $1.5M | $408K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $20.7M | $22.2M | −$1.5M | $6.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $41.9M | $39.5M | $2.4M | $7.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $37.4M | $36.1M | $1.3M | $4.8M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $30.5M | $31.4M | −$860K | $3.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $26.6M | $26.5M | $117K | $4.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $29.4M | $30.1M | −$695K | $3.2M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $20,729,232 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 14 of 14 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $20,729,232 across 10 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $22,246,980 across 22 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $8,749,664 assets, 17 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $5,980,085 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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