Colorado News Collaborative
Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) is a Denver, Colorado-based public charity that supports local journalism and civic engagement across the state. The organization describes itself as a media resource hub and ideas lab that helps news outlets produce fact-based journalism, build trust with communities, and strengthen media business models.
Colorado News Collaborative at a glance
In short: Colorado News Collaborative gave $265K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $24K), mostly in Colorado. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $264,609
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- Average grant
- $24,055
- Median grant
- $19,000
- Total assets
- $474,431
- +168.8% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- Colorado (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to Colorado News Collaborative
- Contact
Mailing address: PO Box 40866, Denver, CO 80204
Phone: (303) 656-9973
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Colorado News Collaborative funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was BACK2BASICS ($97K). Together the top 10 received $259K.
Grant Size Distribution
11 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 10 grants of 11 (91%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
COLab’s stated work serves communities across Colorado, including rural, urban, suburban, tribal, communities of color, Spanish-speaking, and other traditionally underserved communities. All grant dollars itemized for filing year 2025 went to recipients in Colorado.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $265K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| BACK2BASICS Aurora, CO | Project Fulfillment | $96,686 |
| Colorado Hispanic Multimedia Platform Denver, CO | Project Fulfillment | $46,548 |
| Bizzy Bee Enterprises Aurora, CO | Project Fulfillment | $20,838 |
| Confetti Events Manager DBA Afrik Digest Magazine Aurora, CO | Project Fulfillment | $19,649 |
| Alpenglow Publishers DBA Ouray County Plaindealer Ridgway, CO | Project Fulfillment | $19,291 |
| Colorado Times LLC Aurora, CO | Project Fulfillment | $19,000 |
| Zepol Media Partners DBA Alamosa Citizen Alamosa, CO | Project Fulfillment | $10,915 |
| Estes Valley Voice Estes Park, CO | Project Fulfillment | $10,324 |
| Denver Westword Denver, CO | Project Fulfillment | $8,330 |
| Teletrends Denver, CO | Project Fulfillment | $7,203 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $474,431 | $790,645 | $492,538 | $264,609 | 11 | $3,194 |
| 2024 | $176,469 | $560,424 | $456,337 | — | — | — |
| 2023 | $85,701 | $541,440 | $760,437 | — | — | — |
| 2022 | $306,651 | $646,211 | $899,321 | — | — | — |
| 2021 | $582,871 | $876,202 | $728,583 | — | — | — |
| 2020 | $410,409 | $624,896 | $432,108 | — | — | — |
| 2019 | $165,621 | $534,253 | $522,973 | — | — | — |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
COLab’s stated mission is to serve all Coloradans by strengthening high-quality local journalism, supporting civic engagement, and ensuring public accountability. Its website says it helps nearly 200 news outlets across Colorado report stories they could not cover alone and works with communities to build trust with news outlets.
The organization’s website describes support for collaborative, in-depth reporting, including narrative, explanatory, and investigative journalism. It also describes past opportunities connected to newsroom diversity, equity and inclusion; stronger relationships between newsrooms and diverse communities; and more diverse civic news leadership, entrepreneurship, ownership, and narratives.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, COLab reported 11 grants totaling $264,609. The grants ranged from $5,825 to $96,686, with a median of $19,000. The filing lists each grant’s purpose as “project fulfillment.” Recipients included Back2Basics ($96,686), Colorado Hispanic Multimedia Platform ($46,548), Bizzy Bee Enterprises ($20,838), Confetti Events Manager DBA Afrik Digest Magazine ($19,649), and Alpenglow Publishers DBA Ouray County Plaindealer ($19,291).
COLab’s website describes a Model C fiscal sponsorship program for select Colorado journalism-related projects. Sponsored projects must demonstrate charitable or educational intent aligned with COLab’s mission. The site lists a $250 flat administrative fee and additional percentage-based fees tied to funds received through the sponsorship. Projects producing original content must show proof of active media liability insurance before funds are released.
The website also advertised a 2024 Advancing Equity in Local News grant opportunity, with a November 27, 2023 application deadline, and a Press Forward opportunity with a June 12, 2024 deadline. Both are past opportunities.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Laura Frank as Executive Director; Judy Muller as Chair; Tim Regan-Porter as Secretary/Treasurer; and Jean Townsend, Polly Baca, Myung Oak Kim, and Tina Griego as directors.
Colorado News Collaborative is led by Judy Muller, Chair since 2023 (on filings since 2021); 1 of 7 officers listed in 2025 is compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Judy Muller
Chair
Director → Chair, 2023
On filings since 2021
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Tina Griego
Director
Managing Edi → Director, 2025
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
$112K (2024) → $0 (2025)
Polly Baca
Director
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jean Townsend
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Myung Oak Kim
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Laura Frank
Executive Di
On filings since 2022
40 hrs/week
$129K (2022) → $72K (2025)
Tim Regan-Porter
Secretary
Board Treasurer → Director, 2021
Director → Secretary, 2023
On filings since 2020
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (11)
- Former: Damian Thorman (2019–2023) — Chair
- Former: Hubert Farbes (2021–2023) — Vice Chair
- Former: Ning Mosberger-Tang (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Daniela Montano-Flores (2021–2022) — Director
- Former: Lisa Schlichtman (2021–2022) — Treasurer
- Former: Paola Garcia Barron (2021–2022) — Director
- Former: Melissa Milios Davis (2020) — Board Secretary
- Former: Durham Monsma (2019) — Director
- Former: Holly Armstrong (2019) — Director
- Former: Jane Potts (2019) — Director
- Former: Susan Greene (2019) — Editor & Executive Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $72K, to Laura Frank (Executive Di).
Frequently asked questions about Colorado News Collaborative
How much does Colorado News Collaborative give each year?
Colorado News Collaborative gave $265K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990.
What is Colorado News Collaborative's typical grant size?
Colorado News Collaborative's median grant in 2025 was $19,000, and its average grant was $24,055, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Where does Colorado News Collaborative give grants?
Colorado News Collaborative gives mostly in Colorado: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Aurora, CO (4 grants) and Denver, CO (4 grants).
Does Colorado News Collaborative give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 11 grants with a stated purpose on Colorado News Collaborative's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Project Fulfillment" (11 grants).
Who are Colorado News Collaborative's largest grantees?
Colorado News Collaborative's largest 2025 grantees include BACK2BASICS ($96,686), Colorado Hispanic Multimedia Platform ($46,548) and Bizzy Bee Enterprises ($20,838), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 62% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Colorado News Collaborative?
Colorado News Collaborative reported $474K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $791K.
What does Colorado News Collaborative fund?
COLab’s stated mission is to serve all Coloradans by strengthening high-quality local journalism, supporting civic engagement, and ensuring public accountability. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Colorado News Collaborative?
Colorado News Collaborative has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Colorado News Collaborative's EIN?
Colorado News Collaborative's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 46-2634633. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.
Data update history
(2)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 11, 2026)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 6, 2025)
Live grants for the work Colorado News Collaborative funds
Human Services Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Colorado News Collaborative's focus areas in our free grants database
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The filing figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0. About GrantGraph Open
Figures come from Colorado News Collaborative's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
Colorado News Collaborative down — hundreds of funders to go?