The Sentencing Project
The Sentencing Project is a Washington, DC-based public charity, formed in 1986. It advocates for effective and humane responses to crime that minimize imprisonment and the criminalization of youth and adults, with a focus on racial, ethnic, economic, and gender justice.
The Sentencing Project at a glance
In short: The Sentencing Project gave $203K across 12 grants in 2024 (avg $17K), top state Nebraska. 67% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $203,000
- -25.9% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 12
- -29.4% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $16,917
- +5.0% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $10,401,671
- +43.0% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 67% first-time grantees (8 of 12, 2024; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Nebraska (32% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2024; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to The Sentencing Project
- Contact
Mailing address: 1150 Connecticut Ave Nw 601, Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 628-0871
Website: https://sentencingproject.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Sentencing Project funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was Ok Appleseed Center for Law & Justice ($65K). Together the top 10 received $185K.
Grant Size Distribution
50 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 48 grants of 50 (96%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2024 grant dollars went to recipients in multiple states. The largest reported shares were Nebraska (32%), Massachusetts (22%), California (10%), Colorado (10%), and Washington (7%). The listed grants also included recipients in Pennsylvania, New Mexico, New York, Connecticut, and Texas.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Sentencing Project open to new grantees?
67%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 8 of 12 grantees (67%) were first-time recipients. With only 12 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $20K; repeat grants $10K. How we count
Medians: $15K first-time, $10K repeat.
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2021–2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2021 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $110K (2021) to $274K (2023). In 2024 it made 12 grants totaling $203K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Ok Appleseed Center for Law & Justice Lincoln, NE | Support general operations, story collection from currently incarcerated persons, the hiring of an organizer to further narrative change and to bring the directly impacted community into the fold | $65,000 |
| Drop Lwop New England Cambridge, MA | Support educational efforts around policy reforms needed to mitigate harsh sentencing for people in new england | $20,000 |
| Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition Denver, CO | Conduct training sessions on jail-based voting and provide training related to civid education for legal-system communities | $20,000 |
| Teamchild Seattle, WA | Organizing of families of incarcerated youth as well as current and formerly incarcerated youth in response to progressively worsening conditions within juvenile rehabilitation facilities | $15,000 |
| Celwop Hingham, MA | Educational efforts around reforms needed to mitigate harsh sentenicng for the people of Massachusetts. | $15,000 |
| Initiate Justice Los Angeles, CA | Activating the political power of those directly impacted by incarceration. | $10,000 |
| Pennfranchise Project Philadelphia, PA | Support future jail voting coalitions, builds and maintains relationships with other grassroots organizations. | $10,000 |
| Healing Our Land Inc Dorchester, MA | Supporting meeting organizers to facilitate engagement and leadership of currently incarcerated people | $10,000 |
| Ole Education Fund Albuquerque, NM | Developing an inclusive democracy curriculum to empower justice-impacted residents and encouraging the civic engagement of formerly incarcerated people | $10,000 |
| Center for Community Alternatives Inc Syracuse, NY | Non-partisan activities related to the grantors educational campaign to advancesentencing reform in New York state. | $10,000 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $10,401,671 | $8,346,667 | $5,599,399 | $203,000 | 12 | $104,388 |
| 2023 | $7,274,373 | $4,149,060 | $5,505,348 | $274,000 | 17 | $162,937 |
| 2022 | $8,351,605 | $4,900,239 | $3,722,016 | $167,000 | 13 | $38,889 |
| 2021 | $7,429,407 | $5,349,405 | $2,839,890 | $110,000 | 8 | $178,572 |
| 2020 | $4,991,388 | $3,649,437 | $1,804,673 | — | — | $41,586 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The organization’s mission, as stated on its website, is to advocate for effective and humane responses to crime that minimize imprisonment and criminalization of youth and adults while promoting racial, ethnic, economic, and gender justice. Its 2024 filing describes its work as research and education on criminal justice policy issues and advocacy for criminal justice reform.
The 2024 filing describes programs in youth justice, voting rights, extreme sentencing, and policy reform advocacy. Activities include publishing research, educating the public and policymakers, advocating for sentencing and voting-rights reforms, and promoting alternatives to incarceration. The filing also says the organization launched the Second Look Network in March 2023.
In 2024, the organization gave grants to groups working on issues such as sentencing reform, jail-based voting and civic education, youth justice, and leadership and organizing by people affected by incarceration. Among those grantees, TeamChild describes its mission as upholding the rights of youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The Center for Community Alternatives says it works to promote reintegrative justice and reduce reliance on incarceration through advocacy, services, and public policy development. Initiate Justice says its mission is to activate the power of people directly impacted by mass incarceration to lead the movement to end it.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2024, The Sentencing Project reported 12 grants totaling $203,000. Grant amounts ranged from $8,000 to $65,000, with a median of $10,000.
The largest grant was $65,000 to OK Appleseed Center for Law & Justice for general operations, story collection from currently incarcerated people, and hiring an organizer to support narrative change and involve directly impacted communities. Other grants included $20,000 to Drop LWOP New England for education around sentencing reforms, and $20,000 to the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition for jail-based voting and civic-education training. TeamChild received $15,000 for organizing families of incarcerated youth and current and formerly incarcerated youth in response to conditions in juvenile rehabilitation facilities. Initiate Justice received $10,000 to activate the political power of people directly impacted by incarceration. The Center for Community Alternatives received $10,000 for nonpartisan activities related to an educational campaign to advance sentencing reform in New York State.
The filing says grantees are subject to scheduled mid-grant reviews and must submit a final narrative report describing completed activities, along with a final financial report.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Henderson Hill as president, Santha Sonenberg as vice-president, Mark MacDougall as treasurer, and Ashley McSwain as secretary. Directors listed were Marc M. Howard, Angela J. Davis, Cynthia Jones, Marc Mauer, Ebony Underwood, and Jason Hernandez. The filing notes that Underwood served from January through April 2024.
The Sentencing Project is led by Kara Gotsch, Executive Director since 2024 (on filings since 2020); 6 of 15 officers listed in 2024 are compensated.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Kara Gotsch
Executive Director
Deputy Director → Interim Executive Director, 2023
Interim Executive Director → Executive Director, 2024
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$108K (2020) → $195K (2024)
Henderson Hill
President
Director → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ashley Nellis
Co-Director of Research
Senior Research Analyst → Co-Director of Research, 2022
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$110K (2020) → $142K (2024)
Marc Mauer
Director
Senior Advisor → Director, 2023
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
$92K (2020) → $0 (2024)
Nicole Porter
Director of Advocacy
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$105K (2020) → $138K (2024)
Josh Rovner
Director of Youth Justice
On filings since 2023
40 hrs/week
$115K (2023) → $120K (2024)
Nazgol Ghandnoosh
Co-Director of Research
On filings since 2023
40 hrs/week
$120K (2023) → $134K (2024)
Daniel Barash
Director of Finance & Operations
New on the 2024 filing
40 hrs/week
$137K (2024)
Angela J. Davis
Director
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Cynthia Jones
Director
President → Director, 2022
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ebony Underwood
Director -Served From
Director → Director -Served From, 2024
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jason Hernandez
Director
Director & Served → Director, 2023
On filings since 2022
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Marc M. Howard
Director
Director & Served → Director, 2023
On filings since 2022
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ashley McSwain
Secretary
Director → Secretary, 2022
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Santha Sonenberg
Vice President
Secretary → Vice President, 2022
On filings since 2020
0.7 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (11)
- Former: Mark Macdougall (2020–2024) — Treasurer · Filing note: Thru 320
- Former: Amy Fettig (2020–2023) — Executive Director · Filing note: From 720
- Former: Michael Blake (2020–2023) — Director & Served
- Former: Heather Koslov (2022–2023) — Development Director
- Former: Susan Tucker (2020–2022) — Director & Served - · Filing note: Until dec 2021
- Former: Terry Nixon (2020–2022) — Director of Ops & Finance
- Former: Glenn Ivey (2020–2021) — Director · Filing note: Until May 2021
- Former: Nancy Gertner (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Marcy Mistrett (2021) — Director of Youth Justice
- Former: Bobby Vassar (2020) — Director · Filing note: Thru 320
- Former: Honorable Gregory Weeks (2020) — Director · Filing note: Thru 320
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 $195K, to Kara Gotsch (Executive Director). 6 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about The Sentencing Project
How much does The Sentencing Project give each year?
The Sentencing Project gave $203K across 12 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990. In 2023 it gave $274K across 17 grants.
What is The Sentencing Project's typical grant size?
The Sentencing Project's median grant in 2024 was $10,000, and its average grant was $16,917, across 12 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Sentencing Project that year got $20K on average.
Where does The Sentencing Project give grants?
The Sentencing Project's top state is Nebraska, with 32% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990. The next largest states were Massachusetts (22%) and California (10%).
Does The Sentencing Project give general operating support?
Occasionally: 8% of The Sentencing Project's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (1 of 12) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990.
Who are The Sentencing Project's largest grantees?
The Sentencing Project's largest 2024 grantees include Ok Appleseed Center for Law & Justice ($65,000), Drop Lwop New England ($20,000) and Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition ($20,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990. Together they received 52% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is The Sentencing Project?
The Sentencing Project reported $10.4M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $8.3M.
What does The Sentencing Project fund?
The organization’s mission, as stated on its website, is to advocate for effective and humane responses to crime that minimize imprisonment and criminalization of youth and adults while promoting racial, ethnic, economic, and gender justice. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Sentencing Project?
The Sentencing Project has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check sentencingproject.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is The Sentencing Project's EIN?
The Sentencing Project's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 52-1472546. 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.
Data update history
(5)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS October 28, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS October 27, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS September 19, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS October 9, 2025)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Sentencing Project's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Sentencing Project funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-sentencing-project-morg_058b5089a14647fc90a2342bfba19f83
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_521472546_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Sentencing Project funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-sentencing-project-morg_058b5089a14647fc90a2342bfba19f83},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-12. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from The Sentencing Project'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.
The Sentencing Project down — hundreds of funders to go?