New Memphis Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
581607228
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Memphis, TN, USA
Phone
9015274625
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Intergroup, Race Relations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,443,816
Expenses
$2,964,423
Assets
$5,946,410
Liabilities
$1,451,516

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

31 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ANNA MULLINS ELLIS (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • ANNA MULLINS ELLIS (CEO): $204,901 total reported compensation
  • JILL TURNER (COO): $162,086 total reported compensation
  • ANNA WOHRMAN (VP OF STRATEGIC INITIATIVE): $142,955 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

New memphis forges a prosperous and vital new memphis by developing, activating and retaining talent in order to move memphis forward by delivering programs that empower and inspire individuals to further develop the strengths of our city.

What it reported doing in 2025

The leadership development intensive is a three-and-a-half day training experience delivered two times a year in partnership with franklin & white. More than 1,200 executive-level business and civic leaders have completed this program which empowers established leaders to better understand and use their strengths to move memphis forward. Every year this growing number of leaders represents the driving force of new memphis institute: the greatest catalyst of positive transformation in any community is strong and engaged leaders. These leaders spend community time serving on boards and committees based on referrals made by new memphis institute; advising the fellows on their community action projects; engaging and presenting at the celebrate what's right luncheons; and working to develop & activate top talent to memphis (over 3,000 persons benefited).

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 79% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 52
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.5%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 89.1%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $21.59 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 13.9%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.01; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.24; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 21.7%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.5% of revenue deployed · 89.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 27 of 27 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $205K · 31 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $232K reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 57/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.