Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Mar 2021.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
75 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
7 people listed on the 990; $559K paid to officers and key staff.
John Papola’s $318K as CEO is at the 96th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3395 $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 · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Papola | $318,249 | $282,017 | $247,002 | $234,000 | $108,000 |
| Cedric Foster | $223,596 | $202,320 | $187,474 | $187,231 | — |
| Justin Bergeron | $200,945 | $184,862 | $121,645 | — | — |
| Tim Silfies | $144,288 | $130,830 | — | — | — |
| Joshua Meyers | — | — | $139,562 | $137,779 | $65,088 |
| Gavin Tatro | $135,772 | — | — | — | — |
| Ivy Karns | $131,093 | — | — | — | — |
| Brian Behm | — | $105,346 | — | — | — |
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 Emergent Order Foundation INC 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 2Yes
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
- Loans to or from officersSch L · Pt II1 listed
Programs and updates
Creates and shares inspiring stories celebrating heroic virtues.
Questions for Emergent Order Foundation INC
Your first name shows with your question. Emergent Order Foundation INC answers here, for everyone.
Joint Ventures
We partner with mission-aligned organizations in multi-pronged, mutually beneficial collaborations.
Branded Channels
We deliver repeatable, relatable, reliable content to our targeted, owned audiences.
Talent Development
We train the next generation of creative professionals who love America.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2022 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY22 | End FY22 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $2.3M | $2.6M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $266K | $65K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $2.5M | $3.7M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $276K | $1.6M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $2.3M | $2.1M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $375K | $346K | $29K | |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $861K | $714K | $59K | $88K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $19K | $19K | ||
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $60K | $25K | $35K | |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $93K | $93K | ||
| Legal feesLn 11b | $70K | $23K | $47K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $37K | $37K | ||
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $210K | $210K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $353K | $306K | $46K | |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $262K | $250K | $13K | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $73K | $15K | $49K | $9K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $86K | $35K | $51K | $693 |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $212K | $34K | $178K | |
| TravelLn 17 | $48K | $34K | $1K | $13K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $113K | $94K | $17K | $2K |
| InterestLn 20 | $13K | $123 | $13K | |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $56K | $56K | ||
| InsuranceLn 23 | $30K | $6K | $24K | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $1.5M | $1.4M | $4K | $14K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $4.4M | $3.3M | $756K | $349K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 LatestFiled with the IRS May 14, 2026 | $4.6M | $4.7M | −$69K | $1.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024Filed with the IRS Nov 6, 2025 | $4.4M | $5.2M | −$845K | $1.2M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Nov 14, 2024 | $4.9M | $5.0M | −$72K | $2.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 ViewingFiled with the IRS Nov 15, 2023 | $4.3M | $4.4M | −$126K | $2.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS May 16, 2022 | $4.1M | $1.9M | $2.3M | $2.3M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2022 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $4,294,432 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 4 of 6 board members independent, 3 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $4,294,432 across 6 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $4,420,884 across 19 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $3,696,625 assets, 13 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $2,135,272 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2022 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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