Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
270458242
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2023320982
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$17,546,737
Expenses
$12,873,067
Assets
$47,404,861
Liabilities
$1,183,647

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LISA GIBBS (CEO (AS OF 06/24))
  • JON SAWYER (CEO (UNTIL 06/24))

Highest reported compensation

  • MARINA WALKER GUEVARA (EXECUTIVE EDITOR): $259,315 total reported compensation
  • MOUHAMAD ALEM (CHIEF FINANCE AND OPREATIONS OFFICER): $248,784 total reported compensation
  • KATE LAROCQUE (DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT): $227,932 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The pulitzer center promotes in-depth engagement with global affairs through its sponsorship of quality journalism across all media platforms and an innovative program of outreach and education.

What it reported doing in 2024

In 2024, the pulitzer center commissioned 266 reporting projects by 390 journalists and 54 reporting fellows from 37 partner universities. Other programming included outreach events, k12 events, and an international education and outreach program reaching hundreds of thousands more across the globe.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 70% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 96% 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 total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 54.8%; rating input score 55
  • Program expense ratio: 70.8%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $16.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Pass
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 64.5%; rating input score 64; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: 26.6%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.68; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.2%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11.2% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.1% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 54.8% of revenue deployed · 70.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $259K · 21 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $387K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 37 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

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

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.