DT Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
842494757
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Arlington, VA, US
Phone
+1.202.800.6444
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
International Peace and Security

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$12,293,012
Expenses
$12,528,515
Assets
$3,566,329
Liabilities
$3,966,798

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Theano Tsagka (Co-CEO)
  • Hamed Behravan (Vice President of Independent Media, Civic Tech)
  • Pia Wanek (Chief Executive Officer)
  • Schaib Fahad (Vice President of Finance)
  • Kathy Thompson (Co-CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Theano Tsagka (Co-CEO): $219,052 total reported compensation
  • Vukasin Petrovic (Chief of Party): $188,331 total reported compensation
  • Hamed Behravan (Vice President of Independent Media, Civic Tech): $187,454 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To leverage our resources to achieve greater impact and improve as many lives as possible.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization focuses on strengthening communities and leaders, working with local organizations, and developing new approaches through action oriented research in the areas of stabilization, transition, and peacebuilding, adn media, rights and democrac. The organization also works in the technical areas of rule of law abd economic growth abd environmental programming.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 83% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 55% for direct work, and 45% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 47
  • Sustainability: 16
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 83.5%; rating input score 83
  • Program expense ratio: 81.9%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99.7%; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 16.7%; rating input score 17; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -1.9%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.28; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.11; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11.1%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15.1% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 14.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 19.7% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 6 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 7 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 83.5% of revenue deployed · 81.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 1 of 6 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $10.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $219K · 15 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $1.5M reported
  • Consistency: 45 of 46 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2019 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 33 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 10 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 17/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 8 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 24/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 7/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 4/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.