Totals
- Total revenue
- $15,826,266
- Total expenses
- $11,271,388
- Contributions and grants received
- $15,397,252
- Grants paid
- $261,590
- Program service revenue
- $221,596
- Investment income
- $135,314
- Other revenue
- $72,104
- Total assets, end of year
- $12,293,747
- Total liabilities, end of year
- $3,861,885
- Net assets or fund balances, end of year
- $8,431,862
- Program services expenses (Part IX)
- $7,232,998
- Management and general expenses
- $2,000,788
- Fundraising expenses
- $2,037,602
- Program service expenses (Part III)
- $7,232,998
Program services were 64.2% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.
Line items
Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.
Revenue
Part VIII, the statement of revenue.
-
1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants
$15,397,252
-
1g · Noncash contributions included above
$3,300
-
2a · Program service revenue: Program Revenue
total $221,596 · related or exempt $221,596
-
2f · All other program service revenue
total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0
-
3 · Investment income
total $45,562 · excluded $45,562
-
6c · Rental income or loss
real property $0 · personal property $0
-
7a · Gross sales of assets other than inventory
securities $3,450,000
-
7b · Less cost or other basis and sales expenses
securities $3,360,248
-
7c · Gain or loss
securities $89,752 · other assets $0
-
7d · Net gain or loss
total $89,752 · excluded $89,752
-
8c · Net income from fundraising events
total $0
-
11a · Other revenue: Other Revenue
total $72,104 · excluded $72,104
-
11d · All other revenue
total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0
-
11e · Other revenue, total
$72,104
Functional expenses
Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.
-
2 · Grants to domestic individuals
total $261,590 · program services $261,590
-
5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees
total $1,734,657 · program services $457,038 · management and general $694,273 · fundraising $583,346
-
7 · Other salaries and wages
total $3,892,995 · program services $2,937,107 · management and general $389,542 · fundraising $566,346
-
8 · Pension plan contributions
total $199,990 · program services $128,861 · management and general $33,476 · fundraising $37,653
-
9 · Other employee benefits
total $705,497 · program services $460,008 · management and general $114,772 · fundraising $130,717
-
10 · Payroll taxes
total $377,905 · program services $247,213 · management and general $60,986 · fundraising $69,706
-
11b · Fees: legal
total $222,554 · management and general $222,554
-
11c · Fees: accounting
total $108,427 · management and general $108,427
-
11g · Fees: other
total $1,679,848 · program services $1,175,325 · management and general $197,519 · fundraising $307,004
-
12 · Advertising and promotion
total $384,054 · program services $344,801 · management and general $107 · fundraising $39,146
-
13 · Office expenses
total $82,441 · program services $34,213 · management and general $34,005 · fundraising $14,223
-
14 · Information technology
total $168,226 · program services $168,226
-
16 · Occupancy
total $548,038 · program services $343,473 · management and general $98,669 · fundraising $105,896
-
17 · Travel
total $643,011 · program services $458,187 · management and general $35,875 · fundraising $148,949
-
19 · Conferences, conventions and meetings
total $239,509 · program services $203,926 · management and general $5,242 · fundraising $30,341
-
22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization
total $1,358 · management and general $1,358
-
23 · Insurance
total $21,288 · program services $13,030 · management and general $3,983 · fundraising $4,275
-
24e · All other expenses
total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0
Balance sheet
Part X, book values.
-
1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing
beginning of year $1,077,301 · end of year $1,826,855
-
2 · Savings and temporary cash investments
beginning of year $2,576,878 · end of year $4,141,630
-
3 · Pledges and grants receivable
beginning of year $1,263,465 · end of year $3,889,300
-
4 · Accounts receivable
beginning of year $43,374 · end of year $45,001
-
5 · Loans and receivables from officers and key people
beginning of year $0 · end of year $0
-
6 · Loans and receivables from disqualified persons
beginning of year $0 · end of year $0
-
9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges
beginning of year $86,250 · end of year $221,258
-
10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis
$862,088
-
10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation
$855,361
-
10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net
beginning of year $18,084 · end of year $6,727
-
11 · Investments: publicly traded securities
beginning of year $0
-
12 · Investments: other securities
beginning of year $0
-
13 · Investments: program-related
beginning of year $0
-
15 · Other assets
beginning of year $2,524,446 · end of year $2,162,976
-
17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses
beginning of year $684,105 · end of year $1,172,207
-
19 · Deferred revenue
beginning of year $16,666 · end of year $97,573
-
22 · Loans and payables to officers and key people
beginning of year $0 · end of year $0
-
25 · Other liabilities
beginning of year $2,979,849 · end of year $2,592,105
-
27 · Net assets without donor restrictions
beginning of year $1,377,768 · end of year $4,946,713
-
28 · Net assets with donor restrictions
beginning of year $2,531,410 · end of year $3,485,149
Mission and programs · 2025
Mission
The Bill of Rights Institute teaches history and civics. We equip students and teachers to live the ideals of a free and just society.
Activities or mission (Part I)
The Bill of Rights Institute teaches history and civics with content and programs for teachers and students.
-
Educator Programs and Outreach The Bill of Rights Institute delivers rigorous professional development to educators nationwide through conference presentations, independent programs, and partnerships with local schools and districts. These programs offer educators the opportunity to learn teaching strategies and how to deploy BRI resources effectively in their classrooms. In 2025, the Institute continued to expand its network of over 91,000 educators-nearly one in two middle and high school educators in history and civics-and engaged more than 6,500 educators through 315 in-person trainings in twenty-nine states, as well as more than 2,700 educators through webinars and virtual learning.
Expenses $2,750,384 · Grants $190,503 · Revenue $56,888
-
Digital Resource Development and Distribution Established in 1999, the Bill of Rights Institute is the proven market leader in the publication of open educational resources (OER) that teach U.S. history and civics. BRI provides classroom resources to educators and students free of charge, primarily through digital distribution. These resources are designed to help teachers and students explore America's story, its core civic principles, and the skills of citizenship, preparing the next generation to positively shape our nation's future. In 2025, BRI served over 2.9M users with 6.3M page views across its digital platform, including its website, social media properties, and extensive YouTube library, which had over 4.8M views.
Expenses $2,625,023 · Revenue $164,708
-
Student Programs The Bill of Rights Institute engages students directly through intensive study, debate, and civic entrepreneurship programs. These programs cultivate skills in leadership, principled thinking, and deliberation and give students knowledge and practice in citizenship. The BRI Student Fellowship is a selective six-month educational program that helps high school students develop as civic leaders in their communities. MyImpact Challenge is a national contest where students develop service projects inspired by constitutional principles. The Debate and Leadership Institute is a weeklong program in partnership with Founding Forward that helps students build their debate skills and learn about civic responsibility. In 2025, BRI selected twenty students for the Student Fellowship, engaged more than 2,500 students in the MyImpact Challenge national contest, conducted regional civics fairs in New York, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida, and hosted forty-eight students at the Debate Leadership Institute.
Expenses $1,857,591 · Grants $71,087
As filed on the 2025 return.
Listed in Part VII
-
Ryan Stowers
Chairman
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Todd Zywicki
Director/Secretary
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Charles Widger
Director
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Kristina Arriaga
Director
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Mark Humphrey
Director
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Adam Cushing
COO and Treasurer
- Total calculated
- $318,010
- From this org
- $257,997
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $60,013
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $207,997
- Bonus
- $50,000
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $13,487
- Nontaxable benefits
- $46,526
- Filer's total
- $318,010
-
David Bobb
CEO and President
- Total calculated
- $478,009
- From this org
- $423,637
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $54,372
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $233,637
- Bonus
- $190,000
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $7,846
- Nontaxable benefits
- $46,526
- Filer's total
- $478,009
-
Stan Swim
Chief Program Officer
- Total calculated
- $300,996
- From this org
- $241,819
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $59,177
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $196,819
- Bonus
- $45,000
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $12,678
- Nontaxable benefits
- $46,499
- Filer's total
- $300,996
-
Anthony Simone
VP, Development
- Total calculated
- $199,697
- From this org
- $177,282
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $22,415
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $155,782
- Bonus
- $21,500
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $7,925
- Nontaxable benefits
- $14,490
- Filer's total
- $199,697
-
Joanne McKinney
VP, Human Resources
- Total calculated
- $214,911
- From this org
- $173,515
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $41,396
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $151,015
- Bonus
- $22,500
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $8,751
- Nontaxable benefits
- $32,645
- Filer's total
- $214,911
-
Derrick Reed
DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
- Total calculated
- $165,484
- From this org
- $143,641
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $21,843
- Hours/week
- 40
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $127,141
- Bonus
- $16,500
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $7,325
- Nontaxable benefits
- $14,518
- Filer's total
- $165,484
-
Jennifer Seal
DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
- Total calculated
- $153,336
- From this org
- $134,179
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $19,157
- Hours/week
- 40
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $126,679
- Bonus
- $7,500
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $6,207
- Nontaxable benefits
- $12,950
- Filer's total
- $153,336
-
Kirk Higgins
VP, Content
- Total calculated
- $197,268
- From this org
- $144,770
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $52,498
- Hours/week
- 45
Schedule J breakdown matched by us
- Base
- $122,770
- Bonus
- $22,000
- Other
- $0
- Deferred
- $6,231
- Nontaxable benefits
- $46,267
- Filer's total
- $197,268
-
Michael Torres
SR. DIRECTOR, BUSINESS OPERATIONS
- Total calculated
- $137,115
- From this org
- $124,752
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $12,363
- Hours/week
- 40
-
Scott Knowles
DIRECTOR, FINANCE
- Total calculated
- $148,199
- From this org
- $128,226
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $19,973
- Hours/week
- 40
Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.
Schedule J
Answered yes
- 3 · Form 990 of other organizations
- 3 · Compensation survey or study
- 3 · Approval by the board or compensation committee
- 7 · Other non-fixed payments
Answered no
- 4a · Severance or change-of-control payment
- 4b · Supplemental nonqualified retirement plan
- 4c · Equity-based compensation arrangement
- 5a · Pay contingent on this organization's revenues
- 5b · Pay contingent on a related organization's revenues
- 6a · Pay contingent on this organization's net earnings
- 6b · Pay contingent on a related organization's net earnings
- 8 · Paid under the initial-contract exception
The filer's explanations (Part III)
- Schedule J, Part I, Line 7 Non-fixed payments
- Incentive compensation is based on extraordinary efforts and services provided to the organization, not based on financial results of the organization.
Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.
Grants on this return
No itemized grants to organizations on this return.
Taxable family on this return
Schedule R Parts I, III and IV, as filed. These record ownership and control, not shared board members or money moved.
Disregarded entities
Part I: entities that legally are the filer and file no return of their own.
-
BRI Free Speech & Debate LLC
DEBATE OPERATIONS · KS · income $0 · assets $0
Directly controlled by Bill of Rights Institute
Provenance
- Return type
- form_990
- Tax year
- 2025
- Filed
- 22 May 2026
- IRS schema version
- 2025v4.1
- Source object
- 202611429349301201
Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.
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