Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Sep 1998.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
70 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
23 people listed on the 990; $232K paid to officers and key staff.
Maureen Dwyer’s $149K as Executive Director is at the 66th 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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maureen Dwyer | $149,375 | $139,337 | $130,354 | $125,450 | — | — |
| Maureen L Dwyer | — | — | — | — | $126,542 | $143,232 |
| Essence Newhoff | $119,943 | $114,661 | $112,917 | $110,822 | $105,499 | — |
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 Sitar Arts Center executive salaries →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 15aNo
Programs and updates
Offers arts education to improve the lives of low-income youth.
Questions for Sitar Arts Center
Your first name shows with your question. Sitar Arts Center answers here, for everyone.
Visual Arts
Through the visual arts program at Sitar Arts Center, students discover a new means of self-expression while gaining skills in a wide range of artistic mediums as well as 21st century life skills such as creative and critical thinking and communication.
Summer at Sitar
Summer programs include Small Wonders, Camp Sitar, Summer Musical, Teen Arts Intensive and Aftercare. Small Wonders is Camp Sitar's early learning summer program for our youngest campers : PreK4 & Kindergaten. There are 3 two-week sessions available for Small Wonders. Families can sign up for individual sessions or all 3 sessions.
Arts Afterschool
We offer afternoon and Saturday arts classes for students in kindergarten through age 18 during the fall and spring semesters. Classes are in dance, drama, digital arts, music, visual arts, and creative writing. The arts afterschool program is open only to DC residents. Tuition is on a sliding scale based on household income.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2021 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY21 | End FY21 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $978K | $2.3M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $355K | $438K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $6.9M | $6.8M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $10.3M | $11.4M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $3.8M | $3.6M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $6.4M | $7.8M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $129K | $101K | $13K | $14K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $1.1M | $903K | $113K | $124K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $17K | $13K | $2K | $2K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $97K | $74K | $11K | $12K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $109K | $87K | $10K | $12K |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $103K | $103K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $131K | $88K | $36K | $7K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $142 | $64 | $26 | $52 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $61K | $29K | $22K | $11K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $77K | $62K | $8K | $8K |
| TravelLn 17 | $3K | $2K | $291 | $261 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $52K | $5K | $125 | $47K |
| InterestLn 20 | $76K | $76K | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $230K | $184K | $23K | $23K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $38K | $31K | $4K | $4K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $144K | $117K | $2K | $25K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $2.4M | $1.7M | $424K | $290K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 LatestFiled with the IRS Feb 3, 2026 | $3.7M | $4.0M | −$336K | $10.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024Filed with the IRS Feb 3, 2025 | $5.0M | $3.6M | $1.4M | $10.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Jan 31, 2024 | $3.5M | $3.1M | $309K | $9.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Feb 1, 2023 | $4.0M | $2.6M | $1.4M | $9.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS Feb 3, 2022 | $3.7M | $2.4M | $1.3M | $7.8M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS Feb 8, 2021 | $4.1M | $2.5M | $1.6M | $6.4M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $3,742,303 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 21 of 21 board members independent, 1 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $3,742,303 across 9 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $2,409,249 across 16 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $11,396,452 assets, 17 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $7,793,227 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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