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DIGNITY GROWS INC

EIN 85-2708901 HARTFORD, CT

Browse the largest nonprofits in Connecticut

Revenue 2024
$865,607
Expenses 2024
$703,178

Program services were 81.4% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

As filed

Subsection
03
NTEE code
P12
Classification
1000
Street
40 WOODLAND ST

These codes are the IRS's own and are shown exactly as filed. What each one means is in the Business Master File documentation (opens in a new tab).

Other organizations at this address

6 other organizations in the IRS Business Master File list the same street address. matched by us

We match the street line and ZIP code as the IRS gives them, ignoring case and outer spaces and nothing else, so "AVE" and "AVENUE" count as different streets and this list can miss some. A shared address can mean related organizations or a shared office, but it can also be a registered agent, a mail drop or a service provider holding mail for unrelated clients. It is not, by itself, evidence that two organizations are connected.

Mission and programs · 2024

Mission

Dignity Grows is at the forefront of the response to the skyrocketing rate of Period Poverty through groundbreaking national research in partnership with top academic institutions, data-driven social policy change fostered by an extensive collaborative network, and national assemblies of powerhouse philanthropic, industry, and community change-makers. As the nonprofit leader in systemic change to end Period Poverty in the USA, the Dignity Grows model ensures direct hygiene support for tens of thousands of women and girls each year through the Hope in a Bag and Hope in a Backpack programs, powered by a collaborative, curated nexus of 60+ metro-area communities. Dignity Grows is the only national movement supplying menstrual hygiene necessities paired with comprehensive hygiene products for individuals and families to access in their own homes.

Activities or mission (Part I)

To eliminate Period Poverty in America through direct support, research, and social policy change

  • Dignity Grows' signature, Hope in a Bag program, reached over 56,000 underserved women and girls in 2024, providing critical menstrual necessities and hygiene care nationwide. Nearly 40% of this impact supported school-aged girls and their families, helping students remain in class and engaged in extracurricular activities without interruption. This work was made possible through dedicated partnerships with 550 community organizations across metro, urban, and rural communities in 30 states. Facilitated through a hometown chapter model, Hope in a Bag, mobilized a national network of 5,300 volunteers to learn about Period Poverty and assemble monthly hygiene kits for routine distribution this year.

    Expenses $272,086 · Grants $46,743

  • In 2024, Dignity Grows piloted Hope in a Backpack, a new large-scale direct product support program, designed to strengthen entire communities. By addressing menstrual hygiene insecurity across whole zip codes, school districts, healthcare systems, and Indigenous communities, this initiative advances systemic change, ensuring women and girls can pursue their goals free from the disruptive effects of Period Poverty. Hope in a Backpack launched in Petersburg, VA, where it established a collaborative menstrual hygiene support system for every female student in the middle school and high school. Over three-quarters of the families served reported that this hygiene support positively affected the economic stability of their household.

    Expenses $78,498

  • Dignity Grows launched the Period Poverty Institute of America in 2024, establishing the nation's first clearinghouse for research, educational materials, and action-focused collaboration dedicated to this critical public health issue. The Institute provides a virtual home for evidence-based resources and data-driven strategies, elevating Period Poverty from an often overlooked challenge to a recognized determinant of health and opportunity. Dignity Grows' ongoing National Research Initiative on Period Poverty focuses on the prevalence and lived experience of Period Poverty, in conjunction with the Institute. By fostering innovation and access to menstrual equity education, the Institute positions Dignity Grows at the forefront of systemic solutions to end Period Poverty in America.

    Expenses $221,665

As filed on the 2024 return.

Officers and directors · 2024

As listed in Part VII of the 2024 return, in the order the filer printed them. Each return names its own; this is not a roster the organization keeps with us.

  • Jennifer Tolman

    President & COO

    Total calculated
    $86,400
    From this org
    $86,400
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

  • Jessica Zachs

    Board Chair/CEO

    Total calculated
    $1
    From this org
    $1
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

  • Paige Maehara

    Board Treasurer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Michelle Strawder

    Board Secretary eff 1/1/2024

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Stacie Brockman

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Maria Lino

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Daphne Bazile

    Board Member Eff 1/2024

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Brenda Marie

    Board Member Eff 1/2024

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Sofie Brandt

    Board Secretary end 1/1/2024

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

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. Earlier years are each on their own filing page.

Filings

  • 2024
    Revenue
    $865,607
    Expenses
    $703,178
    Contributions
    $865,607
    Grants paid
    $50,639
  • 2023
    Revenue
    $570,749
    Expenses
    $447,134
    Contributions
    $570,749
    Grants paid
    $65,036
  • 2022
    Revenue
    $306,194
    Expenses
    $284,715
    Contributions
    $306,194
    Grants paid
    $27,686

The four totals the IRS asks for on Part I of the Form 990, as filed. A dash means the figure was not present on the return — not that it was zero.

Other returns filed

  • 2021 · 990

    Revenue
    $209,316
    Expenses
    $112,378
    Assets (EOY)
    $100,852

  • 2020 · 990-EZ

    Revenue
    $66,769
    Expenses
    $62,855
    Assets (EOY)
    $3,914

Nonprofiteer parses Forms 990, 990-EZ and 990-PF, in a window of recent tax years. These returns are recorded from the IRS e-file index, so their figures were extracted by that index rather than read from the return here — treat them as a different source from the filings above, not as more of the same record. A dash means the index carries no figure; Form 990-T listings carry none at all.

Grants made

Where these grants went next →

Grants received

The 10 largest by cash amount. The API serves every itemized grant.

Related organizations

From Schedule R Part II, where a filer lists the tax-exempt organizations it is related to by control. It does not record shared board members or money.

Declared on its 2022 return

Taxable family

From Schedule R Parts I, III and IV: entities that legally are the filer, and taxable partnerships, corporations and trusts it is related to. These record ownership and control, not shared board members or money.

Related corporations and trusts on its 2022 return

Other IRS files

Auto-Revocation List

Not listed. The IRS publishes this list for organizations whose exemption was automatically revoked for failing to file for three consecutive years.

Publication 78

Listed as of 13 October 2026, under deductibility PC.

These are two separate IRS files on two separate schedules, shown as published and not reconciled with each other. Neither is a statement about whether a contribution is deductible today: 19,245 organizations appear in Publication 78 while the IRS's own revocation file lists them as currently revoked, more than half of those revoked before 2019. Absence from Publication 78 is evidence of nothing, and presence is not evidence either. Verify current status with the IRS before relying on it.

What this page reflects

The registration facts above come from the IRS Business Master File published 13 October 2026 and read 1 November 2026, for every organization at once. Returns through tax year 2024, the newest we have parsed for this organization.