Touchstones' Discussion-based programs develop thinking and collaboration at the highest levels for all students and learners. Touchstones primary focus is to address gaps in education in k-12 schools by teaching educators and students to use structured dialogue to activate and enliven their thinking and build cooperation and leadership. These programs are held in schools, prisons, senior centers, and with veterans and executive groups.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
40¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 55 volunteers and 9 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

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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 deficit $28K a year · 7% of revenue · last 5 filings
Concern: a surplus in 2 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
40%
of spending
Concern: 40% of spending went to programs; under 50%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$122K
to officers and key staff · 24% of spending
Worth a look: pay to officers and key staff is 24% of spending; over 20%.
Pt VII · Sec A
<1 mo
of spending, in cash
Plus $157K in investments, Pt X · Ln 11–13
Fine: 0.9 months of spending in cash, plus $157K in investments.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
4
named funders · $52K
Looks good: 4 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$217K
38% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 38% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
12
of 12 voting members
Looks good: 12 of 12 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$428K
-4% vs prior year
Spent
$504K
To programs
40%
Net assets
$351K
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$428K
FY2024▼ -4%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$410K
FY2021$417K
FY2022$397K
FY2023$445K
FY2024$428K
Expenses
$504K
FY2024▲ +2%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$394K
FY2021$395K
FY2022$453K
FY2023$493K
FY2024$504K
Net assets
$351K
FY2024▼ -24%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$538K
FY2021$559K
FY2022$476K
FY2023$463K
FY2024$351K

From the FY2024 Form 990 · see the original

Give Claim

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Aug 1997.

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

Where the money goes

40 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 40% · $204K Management & general 45% · $229K Fundraising 14% · $72K

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

12 people listed on the 990; $122K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Director
$95,333Pt VII · Sec A
Dir Exec Leadership
$26,780Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice-Chair
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Stefanie Takacs’s $95K as Executive Director is at the 81st percentile of top reported officer pay among 1613 $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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Stefanie Takacs$95,333————
Stefanie Takacs Msed—$95,306$85,846$85,100$89,122
Howard Zeiderman$26,780$26,000$19,500$4,500$14,769

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 2Yes
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Develops thinking and collaboration through discussion programs for students, educators, and various groups.

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Provided by the organization

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1 program · $204K · in their own filed words · FY2024
01

See Schedule O

$204Kprogram 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 4 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$428K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$251K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$192K
Investment incomeLn 3−$26K
Money outPt IX
$504K
Ln 25
Programscol B$204K
Managementcol C$229K
Fundraisingcol D$72K
Owns and owesPt X
$351K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$38K
Total assetsLn 16$568K
LiabilitiesLn 26$217K
PeoplePt VI, VII
12
listed · VII A
PaidVII A2
Voting boardVI 1a12
IndependentVI 1b12
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$251K
Noncash giftsLn 1g$37K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$192K
Investment incomeLn 3−$26K
Total revenueLn 12$428K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$37K
SavingsLn 2$992
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$38K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$157K
Total assetsLn 16$568K
LiabilitiesLn 26$217K
Net assetsLn 32$351K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 59
VolunteersI 655
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
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$97K$38K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$181K$157K
Total assetsLn 16$690K$568K
LiabilitiesLn 26$227K$217K
Net assetsLn 32$463K$351K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
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$0
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$267K$123K$97K$47K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$0
Other employee benefitsLn 9$28K$14K$10K$4K
Payroll taxesLn 10$20K$9K$7K$4K
Management feesLn 11a$0
Legal feesLn 11b$2K$2K
Accounting feesLn 11c$4K$4K
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$808$808
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$44K$11K$33K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$8K$1K$6K
Office expensesLn 13$5K$3K$1K$1K
Information technologyLn 14$8K$5K$1K$1K
RoyaltiesLn 15$0
OccupancyLn 16$21K$15K$2K$4K
TravelLn 17$8K$4K$3K$851
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$0
InterestLn 20$8K$8K
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$0
InsuranceLn 23$3K$1K$2K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$77K$16K$50K$11K
All other expensesLn 24e$0
Total functional expensesLn 25$504K$204K$229K$72K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest Viewing $428K$504K−$76K$351K 990 PDF
FY2023 $445K$493K−$48K$463K 990 PDF
FY2022 $397K$453K−$56K$476K 990 PDF
FY2021 $417K$395K$21K$559K 990 PDF
FY2020 $410K$394K$17K$538K 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 M · Noncash O · Explanations
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $428,289 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $304,450$251,160
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $113,744$191,802
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $12,625−$25,506
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $14,153$10,833
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $444,972$428,289
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paid$0
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $285,533$315,214
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $207,035$189,189
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $492,568$504,403
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$47,596−$76,114
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, 1 to look at
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body12
VI-1b Independent voting members12
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsYes
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 $428,289 across 6 lines filed
Lines not itemized here account for $10,833 of total revenue; see the IRS return.
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$251,160
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$37,292
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$251,160
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $191,802$191,802
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax −$25,506−$25,506
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $202,635 · Excluded from tax −$25,506$428,289
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $504,403 across 30 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizations$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individuals$0
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipients$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for members$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staff$0
IX-6 Pay of disqualified persons$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $122,697 · Management $97,384 · Fundraising $46,817$266,898
IX-8 Pension plan contributions$0
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $14,051 · Management $10,159 · Fundraising $3,632$27,842
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $9,412 · Management $7,471 · Fundraising $3,591$20,474
IX-11a Management fees$0
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $2,302$2,302
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $4,418$4,418
IX-11d Lobbying fees$0
IX-11f Investment management feesPrograms $808$808
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $10,932 · Management $33,200$44,132
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $1,492 · Management $6,140$7,632
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $2,537 · Management $1,464 · Fundraising $1,261$5,262
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $5,089 · Management $1,447 · Fundraising $1,489$8,025
IX-15 Royalties$0
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $15,172 · Management $2,260 · Fundraising $3,621$21,053
IX-17 TravelPrograms $3,769 · Management $3,011 · Fundraising $851$7,631
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officials$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetings$0
IX-20 InterestManagement $7,783$7,783
IX-21 Payments to affiliates$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortization$0
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $1,356 · Management $2,036$3,392
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $16,258 · Management $49,878 · Fundraising $10,615$76,751
IX-24e All other expenses$0
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $203,573 · Management $228,953 · Fundraising $71,877$504,403
Part X · Balance sheet $567,725 assets, 14 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $50,954$36,946
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $45,956$992
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $256,000$209,576
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $14,245$23,419
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $141,666$139,666
X-12 Other securitiesStart of year $181,088$157,126
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $689,909$567,725
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $27,091$7,813
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payableStart of year $199,600$209,313
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $226,691$217,126
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $303,879$200,386
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $159,339$150,213
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $463,218$350,599
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $689,909$567,725
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $350,599 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$428,289
XI-2 Total expenses$504,403
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$76,114
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$463,218
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments−$36,505
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$350,599

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

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