The Institute for Nonprofit News (INN) is a public charity based in Beverly Hills, California. It supports a network of 500 independent news organizations through education and business support, and works to promote public-service and investigative journalism.
Key facts about Institute for Nonprofit News
In short: Institute for Nonprofit News gave $9.6M across 329 grants in 2024 (avg $29K), top state California. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990.
- EIN
- 27-2614911
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2024
- Annual giving (2024)
- $9,593,991
- Grants made (2024)
- 329
- Average grant
- $29,161
- Median grant
- $20,000
- Total assets
- $8,704,403
- Primary geography
- California (24% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Deadline
- September 10, 2026.
Data from IRS Form 990, 2024; updated September 2026. Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990 · View filing
Total Assets
$8.7M
+15.7% YoY
Annual Giving
$9.6M
+110.7% YoY
Grant Count
329
+498.2% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$29K
-64.8% YoY
How Institute for Nonprofit News gives
- Giving grew 250% from 2021 to 2024. Method
From the foundation's IRS Form 990 filings. Methodology.
Mission & Focus Areas
INN’s stated mission is to foster and promote the highest quality investigative and public-service journalism. Its programs provide resources and training and help distribute investigative news content. The organization identifies priorities including strengthening philanthropic support for journalism, centering diversity, equity and inclusion, supporting experimentation in nonprofit news models, and investing in talent.
Examples of organizations that received grants from INN in 2022 include the Foundation for an individual recipient, whose stated mission is to promote informed citizenship in Greater Los Angeles through civic-minded, factually rigorous journalism; Honolulu Civil Beat, which says it cultivates an informed body of citizens through investigative, watchdog, and other reporting; and New Mexico In Depth, which says its journalism aims to be a catalyst for change. Other 2022 recipients included the Texas Tribune, Coda Media, Next City, the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting, and Bay City News Foundation.
Grantmaking
INN’s 2022 filing reported $2,598,202 in grants across 34 grants. Examples include $278,515 to the Foundation for an individual recipient, $19,500 to Honolulu Civil Beat, and $15,502 to New Mexico In Depth. The Texas Tribune, Coda Media, Next City, the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting, and Bay City News Foundation each received $8,000. Its 2024 filing, the latest on this page, reports 329 grants totaling $9.6 million.
Separately, INN reported that 425 independent news organizations received a total of $14,114,004 in direct support during 2024 through NewsMatch, the Google News Initiative partnership, and other sources. The reported median direct support per member was $35,000. This figure describes program support to newsrooms, not the number or total of grants reported on INN’s filing.
INN’s Nonprofit News Awards (INNYs) honor journalism, leadership, and community service. They are open to full or provisional INN member organizations in good standing; eligible work must fall within the contest’s stated publication period, with certain series and freelancer work also eligible.
Review Cycle
September 10, 2026.
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The INNY awards have a United States geographic scope. The 2022 grant recipients listed above were based in California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, and Mississippi.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 329 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $2.4M (2020) to $9.6M (2024). In 2024 it made 329 grants totaling $9.6M.
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was Gigafact ($780K). Together the top 10 received $2.7M.
Organizations only. It also paid 2 grants to individuals ($52,500), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
541 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 492 grants of 541 (91%).
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Gigafact Redwood City, CA | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $780,258 |
| Foundation for La Journalism Sacramento, CA | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $491,711 |
| The Kansas City Defender Kansas City, MO | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $334,375 |
| Pass Blue Brooklyn, NY | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $269,196 |
| Public Road Productions LLC Skokie, IL | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $175,569 |
| The Miami Foundation Miami, FL | Inn Support - Luce Grant | $139,050 |
| Newshour Productions LLC Arlington, VA | Inn Support - Labs & Columbia Colla | $114,660 |
| Ark Valley Voice Salida, CO | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $70,454 |
| Alternative Newsweekly Fnd Washington, DC | Inn Support - Labs, & Election Guid | $66,000 |
| Dial Magazine Inc New York, NY | Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor | $65,173 |
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $8,704,213 | $15,597,014 | $15,663,062 | 0 |
| 2023 | $7,463,456 | $8,495,751 | $9,894,827 | 0 |
| 2022 | $8,590,184 | $8,202,036 | $6,442,637 | 34; $2,598,202 total |
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $8,704,403 | $7,522,880 | $8,590,184 |
| Revenue | $15,594,880 | $8,569,299 | $8,202,036 |
| Expenses | $15,663,213 | $10,079,196 | $6,442,637 |
| Net Investment Income | $182,570 | $136,266 | $35,789 |
Data update history
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 4, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 9, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 14, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS October 10, 2025)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS January 26, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Officers and directors listed on the 2024 filing include Karen Rundlet, CEO; Courtney Lewis, Growth Officer; Charles Potts Jr., Director of Finance; Johnathan Kealing, Network Officer; Lisa M Gardner-Springer, Chief Development Officer; Soraya Membreno, COO; Stephanie Schenkel, Network Philanthropy Director; Sharene Azimi, Director of Communications; Emily Roseman, INN Index Director; and Marcia Parker, Chairman.
Institute for Nonprofit News is led by Karen Rundlet, CEO on the 2024 filing; 9 of 21 officers listed in 2024 are compensated.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Karen Rundlet
CEO
New on the 2024 filing
40 hrs/week
$215K (2024)
Marcia Parker
Chairman
Secretary → Chair, 2021
Chair → Chairman, 2023
On filings since 2020
10 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Charles Potts Jr.
Director of Finance
Director of Finance & Oper → Director of Finance, 2022
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$133K (2020) → $157K (2024)
Emily Roseman
Inn Index Director
Research Director & Edito → Research Director & Editor, 2023
Research Director & Editor → Inn Index Director, 2024
On filings since 2021
40 hrs/week
$127K (2021) → $115K (2024)
Sharene Azimi
Director of Communications
Director of Communications → Communications Dirctor, 2023
Communications Dirctor → Director of Communications, 2024
On filings since 2021
40 hrs/week
$139K (2021) → $124K (2024)
Stephanie Schenkel
Network Philanthropy Director
On filings since 2023
40 hrs/week
$136K (2023) → $131K (2024)
Hsiu Mei Wong
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Mark Horvit
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kyra Kyles
Director
On filings since 2021
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kinsey Wilson
Director
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Lucas Grindley
Director
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Valeria Fernandez
Director
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Carla Minet
Director
New on the 2024 filing
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Graciela Mochkosfky
Director
New on the 2024 filing
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
John Adams
Director
New on the 2024 filing
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Johnathan Kealing
Network Officer
Chief Network Officer → Chief Development Officer, 2023
Chief Development Officer → Network Officer, 2024
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$140K (2020) → $141K (2024)
Lisa M. Gardner-Springer
Chief Development Officer
On filings since 2022
40 hrs/week
$165K (2022) → $138K (2024)
Soraya Membreno
COO
Cheif Operating Officer → COO, 2023
On filings since 2022
40 hrs/week
$102K (2022) → $132K (2024)
Courtney Lewis
Growth Officer
Chief of Growth Programs → Growth Officer, 2024
On filings since 2023
40 hrs/week
$165K (2023) → $161K (2024)
Bruce Theriault
Treasurer
On filings since 2020
10 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ron Smith
Secretary
Director → Secretary, 2021
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (17)
- Former: Erika Dilday (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Ron Nixon (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Sheila Krumholz (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Sue Cross (2020–2023) — CEO
- Former: Courtney Hurtt (2021–2022) — Cheif Growth Officer
- Former: Bridget K. Thoreson (2022) — Director of Collaboration
- Former: Meta E. Stange (2022) — New Match Program Manager
- Former: Sara Shahriari (2022) — Director of Leadership & Talent Development
- Former: Jeffrey Woolverton (2020–2021) — Network Philantrapy Director
- Former: Lawrence R. Horne (2020–2021) — Director of Development
- Former: Norberto Santana (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Kelsey Ryan (2021) — Director
- Former: Michelle Morgante (2021) — Member Network Director
- Former: Frances R. Scarlett (2020) — Director of Knowledge Officer
- Former: Kayleen M. Lima (2020) — Director of Technology
- Former: Laura Frank (2020) — Chair
- Former: Neal Shapiro (2020) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2024 filing was $215K, to Karen Rundlet (CEO). 9 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Contact
Mailing address: 8549 Wilshire Blvd 2294, Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Phone: (213) 709-7126
Website: https://inn.org
Frequently asked questions about Institute for Nonprofit News
How much does Institute for Nonprofit News give each year?
Institute for Nonprofit News gave $9.6M across 329 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990. In 2023 it gave $4.6M across 55 grants.
What is Institute for Nonprofit News's typical grant size?
Institute for Nonprofit News's median grant in 2024 was $20,000, and its average grant was $29,161, across 329 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990.
Where does Institute for Nonprofit News give grants?
Institute for Nonprofit News's top state is California, with 24% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990. The next largest states were New York (13%) and Illinois (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (19 grants), Washington, DC (13 grants), Brooklyn, NY (10 grants) and Chicago, IL (9 grants).
Does Institute for Nonprofit News give general operating support?
Not in 2024: none of the 329 grants with a stated purpose on Institute for Nonprofit News's 2024 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Inn Support - Labs" (241 grants), "Organization Is a Fiscal Sponsor" (23 grants) and "Inn Support - Labs & Election Guide" (23 grants).
Who are Institute for Nonprofit News's largest grantees?
Institute for Nonprofit News's largest 2024 grantees include Gigafact ($780,258), Foundation for La Journalism ($511,711 across 2 grants) and The Kansas City Defender ($354,375 across 2 grants), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990. It also paid 2 grants to individuals ($52,500), which are not listed by name. Together they received 17% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Institute for Nonprofit News?
Institute for Nonprofit News reported $8.7M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $15.6M.
What does Institute for Nonprofit News fund?
INN’s stated mission is to foster and promote the highest quality investigative and public-service journalism. Its programs provide resources and training and help distribute investigative news content. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Institute for Nonprofit News?
Institute for Nonprofit News has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check inn.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Institute for Nonprofit News's EIN?
Institute for Nonprofit News's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 27-2614911. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
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