Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Mar 2022.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
73 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
6 people listed on the 990; $292K paid to officers and key staff.
Reginald Dwayne Betts’s $211K as Founder & Ce is at the 92nd percentile of top reported officer pay among 3869 $1–10M 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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reginald Dwayne Betts | $211,330 | $172,218 | $87,500 |
| Ivan Dominguez | $155,170 | — | — |
| Tyler Sperrazza | $128,953 | $119,631 | — |
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
Builds libraries in prison cellblocks to nurture dignity and inspire hope.
Questions for Freedom Reads
Your first name shows with your question. Freedom Reads answers here, for everyone.
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Freedom libraries, providing curated 500-BOOK library collections along with the production of custom-made bookshelves, specialized freedom editions books, book circles to provide books outside of formal freedom libraries, and a library membership program, all in correctional facilities.
Freedom stories, fostering narrative change in the concept and treatment of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals by training and empowering freedom ambassadors and others to draw on their experiences inside prisons to create campaigns to raise awareness and change policy.
Freedom ambassadors, featuring literary talks and media productions, career opportunities for former residents (freedom fellows), the literature to life partnership to bring specific books into prisons as solo shows, and the freedom takes, a podcast geared toward listeners inside and outside of prison.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2023 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY23 | End FY23 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $4.4M | $7.2M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $16K | $24K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $225K | $755K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $4.8M | $15.6M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $541K | $1.5M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $4.3M | $14.1M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $187K | $112K | $19K | $56K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $699K | $467K | $160K | $71K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $191K | $131K | $19K | $41K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $70K | $46K | $14K | $10K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $34K | $11K | $23K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $66K | $66K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $20 | $20 | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $461K | $68K | $309K | $84K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $199K | $64K | $49K | $86K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $24K | $4K | $14K | $6K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $87K | $7K | $77K | $3K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $149K | $122K | $19K | $8K |
| TravelLn 17 | $144K | $106K | $13K | $25K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $4K | $384 | $4K | |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $43K | $191 | $43K | |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $6K | $6K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $2.2M | $2.1M | $1K | $20K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $115K | $101K | $12K | $2K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $4.6M | $3.4M | $847K | $412K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest | $3.6M | $6.1M | −$2.4M | $11.7M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 Viewing | $14.5M | $4.6M | $9.9M | $14.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $6.2M | $1.9M | $4.3M | $4.3M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2023 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $14,531,468 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 5 of 5 board members independent, 2 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $14,531,468 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $4,637,427 across 18 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $15,645,672 assets, 16 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $14,149,782 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2023 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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