Writers & Books Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
161154656
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Rochester, NY, USA
Phone
5854732590
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$750,842
Expenses
$784,005
Assets
$766,598
Liabilities
$153,206

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Christine Eichelberger (President)
  • Timothy B Schmid (Vice President)
  • William Grande (Vice President and Secretary)
  • Alison Meyers - Through 82025 (Executive Director)
  • Michael Solis - Began 92025 (Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • Alison Meyers - Through 82025 (Executive Director): $67,848 total reported compensation
  • Michael Solis - Began 92025 (Executive Director): $24,102 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Writers & Books fosters and promotes reading and writing as lifelong activities for people of all ages and backgrounds.

What it reported doing in 2025

Writers and Books cultivates readers and writers of all ages by providing opportunities for creative expression, learning, and community engagement through the literary arts. The Organization delivers workshops, writing groups, youth programs, author events, and community based initiatives that support individuals at all stages of their creative journeys.Programs are offered both at its Rochester based facility and in partnership with schools, libraries, and community organizations across the region, expanding access to underserved and underrepresented populations.(Continued on Schedule O)Writers and Books owns and operates Ampersand Books, an independent bookstore that supports its literary programming and connects readers to diverse voices and works. The Organization also operates Gell: A Finger Lakes Creative Retreat, a 24 acre site in Naples, NY, which hosts residencies, retreats, and immersive creative experiences for writers and artists.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 73% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 93% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 65.1%; rating input score 65
  • Program expense ratio: 60.7%; rating input score 61
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -4.4%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.98; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.2; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11.7%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.8% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -2.4% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 65.1% of revenue deployed · 60.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 16 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $476K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $68K · 18 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 20/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 32/100.