ORGANIZATION'S MISSION: At The Telling Room, we empower youth through writing and share their voices with the world. Focused on young writers age 6 to 18, we seek to build confidence, strengthen literacy skills, and provide audiences for students. As a literary arts education and youth publishing organization, we believe that the power of creative expression can change communities for the better and help youth succeed now and in the future.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
62¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$63K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

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FY2021 · 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
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average deficit $27K a year · 3% of revenue · last 6 filings
Concern: a surplus in 2 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
62%
of spending
Worth a look: 62% of spending went to programs; under 65%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$63K
to officers and key staff · 9% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 9% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
17 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 17.3 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
3
named funders · $7K
Looks good: 3 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$105K
10% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 10% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
14
of 14 voting members
Looks good: 14 of 14 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$932K
+29% vs prior year
Spent
$709K
To programs
62%
Net assets
$920K
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$932K
FY2021▲ +29%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$725K
FY2021$932K
FY2022$915K
FY2023$960K
FY2024$779K
FY2025$960K
Expenses
$709K
FY2021▼ -3%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$728K
FY2021$709K
FY2022$877K
FY2023$998K
FY2024$1.1M
FY2025$1.0M
Net assets
$920K
FY2021▲ +30%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$705K
FY2021$920K
FY2022$958K
FY2023$920K
FY2024$627K
FY2025$537K

From the FY2021 Form 990 (year ending June 2021) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Sep 2006.

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

Where the money goes

62 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 62% · $439K Management & general 22% · $154K Fundraising 16% · $116K

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

15 people listed on the 990; $63K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2020); the FY2021 filing did not itemize Part VII
Former Executive Director
$62,973Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Kristina Powell’s $79K as Executive Director is at the 71st percentile of top reported officer pay among 1992 $100K–1M youth development 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

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Kristina Powell$78,916$79,988$77,311$20,449——
Celine Kuhn————$62,973$71,928

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 youth through writing, sharing their voices and building confidence.

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Provided by the organization

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1 program · $439K · in their own filed words · FY2020
01

To provide a writing program for young writers and storytellers betwen the ages of 6 and 18.

$439Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 3 funders$7K
See all 3 funders →
Grants paid · 3 grants · $81K · 2022–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$29,049
Unitemized GrantFY2023$24,748
Unitemized GrantFY2022$27,395

By the numbers

The FY2021 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$932K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$691K
Other incomeLn 4–11$161K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$80K
Money outPt IX
$709K
Ln 25
Programscol B$439K
Managementcol C$154K
Fundraisingcol D$116K
Owns and owesPt X
$920K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$1.0M
Total assetsLn 16$1.0M
LiabilitiesLn 26$105K
PeoplePt VI, VII
15
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a14
IndependentVI 1b14
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$691K
Government grantsLn 1e$76K
Noncash giftsLn 1g$28K
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$2K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$80K
Investment incomeLn 3$526
Other incomeLn 4–11$161K
Total revenueLn 12$932K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$343K
SavingsLn 2$677K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$1.0M
Other assetsLn 15$863
Total assetsLn 16$1.0M
LiabilitiesLn 26$105K
Net assetsLn 32$920K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 530
VolunteersI 675
Fiscal year endsHeaderJune
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aNo
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14No
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY21End FY21
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$806K$1.0M
Total assetsLn 16$813K$1.0M
LiabilitiesLn 26$107K$105K
Net assetsLn 32$705K$920K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$65K$44K$7K$13K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$383K$265K$40K$78K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$6K$3K$2K$1K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$26K$13K$9K$4K
Payroll taxesLn 10$37K$26K$4K$8K
Legal feesLn 11b$4K$4K
Accounting feesLn 11c$9K$9K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$43K$8K$31K$4K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$1K$750$229$500
Office expensesLn 13$28K$3K$23K$2K
Information technologyLn 14$12K$566$12K
TravelLn 17$138$138
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$2K$2K
InsuranceLn 23$6K$6K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$83K$75K$3K$5K
All other expensesLn 24e$2K$301$2K
Total functional expensesLn 25$709K$439K$154K$116K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $960K$1.0M−$90K$537K 990 PDF
FY2024 $779K$1.1M−$294K$627K 990 PDF
FY2023 $960K$998K−$38K$920K 990 PDF
FY2022 $915K$877K$38K$958K 990 PDF
FY2021 Viewing $932K$709K$223K$920K 990 PDF
FY2020 $725K$728K−$3K$705K 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 FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $931,740 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $584,431$690,819
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $74,500$79,764
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $5,120$526
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $60,678$160,631
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $724,729$931,740
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paidPrior year $0$0
I-14 Benefits paid to membersPrior year $0$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $527,880$517,227
I-16a Professional fundraising feesPrior year $0$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $200,001$191,431
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $727,881$708,658
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$3,152$223,082
Part VI · Governance 14 of 14 board members independent, 2 to look at
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body14
VI-1b Independent voting members14
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyNo
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyNo
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $931,740 across 10 lines filed
Lines not itemized here account for $12,277 of total revenue; see the IRS return.
VIII-1c Fundraising events$1,625
VIII-1e Government grants$76,000
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$613,194
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$28,080
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$690,819
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $79,764$79,764
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $526$526
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising eventsExcluded from tax $40,671$40,671
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $107,683$107,683
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $199,724 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $41,197$931,740
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $708,658 across 16 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $44,429 · Management $7,297 · Fundraising $13,182$64,908
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $264,623 · Management $40,446 · Fundraising $78,162$383,231
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $3,165 · Management $2,180 · Fundraising $1,130$6,475
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $12,547 · Management $8,641 · Fundraising $4,482$25,670
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $25,509 · Management $3,899 · Fundraising $7,535$36,943
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $3,777$3,777
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $8,713$8,713
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $8,386 · Management $31,081 · Fundraising $3,888$43,355
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $750 · Management $229 · Fundraising $500$1,479
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $2,900 · Management $23,268 · Fundraising $2,317$28,485
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $566 · Management $11,898$12,464
IX-17 TravelPrograms $138$138
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationManagement $1,700$1,700
IX-23 InsuranceManagement $6,130$6,130
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $75,262 · Management $3,023 · Fundraising $4,957$83,242
IX-24e All other expensesPrograms $301 · Management $1,647$1,948
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $438,576 · Management $153,929 · Fundraising $116,153$708,658
Part X · Balance sheet $1,024,769 assets, 14 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $230,100$342,730
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $576,236$676,762
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $2,200$1,900
X-8 Inventories for sale or useStart of year $1,413$2,514
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $863$863
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $812,513$1,024,769
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expenses$14,781
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payableStart of year $107,400$90,000
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $27$0
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $107,427$104,781
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $660,086$819,988
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $45,000$100,000
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $705,086$919,988
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $812,513$1,024,769
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $919,988 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$931,740
XI-2 Total expenses$708,658
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$223,082
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$705,086
XI-8 Prior period adjustments−$8,180
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$919,988

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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