AMERICAN FEDERATION FOR CHILDREN INC Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

AMERICAN FEDERATION FOR CHILDREN INC

EIN 33-0627955 · Alliances & Advocacy - Education (B01)

What they do

A COMMUNITY of PEOPLE PROMOTING EDUCATIONAL CHOICE and INNOVATION, WITH A SPECIFIC FOCUS ON SCHOOL VOUCHERS, SCHOLARSHIP TAX CREDIT PROGRAMS and EDUCATIONAL SAVINGS ACCOUNTS. WE ARE COMMITTED to BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS to EDUCATIONAL CHOICE to HELP CHILDREN, ESPECIALLY LOW-INCOME CHILDREN, ACCESS THE QUALITY EDUCATION NECESSARY to REACH THEIR FULL POTENTIAL.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $82.40 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders17 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

75.31%of revenue went to mission work82.4% of expenses · Program services

4.98%of revenue went to fundraising5.5% of expenses

$91.41spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

11.11%of revenue went to management and office costs12.2% of expenses

$0.58in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

97.3%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $427,942 for THOMAS SCHULTZ (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$11,825,233

Mission workProgram services$8,905,46575.31% of revenue82.4% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$1,314,14311.11% of revenue12.2% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$589,2984.98% of revenue5.5% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$1,016,3278.59% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$10,808,90691.41% of revenue

Gray means reported revenue left after expenses for this filing year. It does not necessarily mean cash sitting in a bank account.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 82.4% mission · 12.2% management · 5.5% fundraisingTotal expenses: 91.41% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 77.6% mission · 9.5% management · 12.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 98.88% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 81.6% mission · 10.7% management · 7.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 98.22% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 78.0% mission · 15.2% management · 6.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 86.70% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 82.4% mission · 10.4% management · 7.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 93.97% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 82.7% mission · 10.6% management · 6.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 98.90% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 82.4% mission · 7.9% management · 9.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 113.21% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 83.9% mission · 8.3% management · 7.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 93.15% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$11,825,233

Expenses$10,808,906

Annual surplus $1,016,327 Revenue was higher than expenses for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$8,905,465 · 82.4% of expenses

Management and office costs$1,314,143 · 12.2% of expenses

Fundraising$589,298 · 5.5% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$11,825,233

Expenses$10,808,906

Assets$6,313,490

Income$12,945,313

Contributions$11,502,035

Mission work (program services)$8,905,465

Fundraising$589,298

Grants given$14,549,887

Average grant$102,464

Management and general$1,314,143

Accounting fees$55,750

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

THOMAS SCHULTZCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER · 17 hrs/week $427,942Base $383,293 · Other $44,649

RYAN CANTRELLVP GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS · 26 hrs/week $368,294Base $316,320 · Other $51,974

ELISA CLEMENTS LINDECHIEF OPERATING OFFICER · 15 hrs/week $368,122Base $350,522 · Other $17,600

MARK Z DAWESSPECIAL ADVISOR · 19 hrs/week $335,816Base $283,380 · Other $52,436

JENNIFER MILLERCFO/TREASURER · 23 hrs/week $314,847Base $263,230 · Other $51,617

STEVE SAXEGENERAL COUNSEL · 34 hrs/week $293,042Base $259,289 · Other $33,753

KATIE LINEHANVP COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT · 15 hrs/week $286,730Base $265,544 · Other $21,186

GILLUM FERGUSONDIRECTOR OF POLITICAL STRATEGY · 32 hrs/week $265,295Base $232,029 · Other $33,266

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (17)

THOMAS SCHULTZCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

RYAN CANTRELLVP GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

ELISA CLEMENTS LINDECHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

MARK Z DAWESSPECIAL ADVISOR

JENNIFER MILLERCFO/TREASURER

STEVE SAXEGENERAL COUNSEL

KATIE LINEHANVP COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT

GILLUM FERGUSONDIRECTOR OF POLITICAL STRATEGY

WILLIAM E OBERNDORFCHAIRMAN

ANN DUPLESSISDIRECTOR

STACY HOCKDIRECTOR

PAUL SHIVERICKDIRECTOR

LEE BARFIELD IIDIRECTOR

KATHY HUBBARDSECRETARY

JOHN KIRTLEYVICE-CHAIR

HON JOSEPH LIEBERMANDIRECTOR (THRU 02/24)

EDWARD MCDERMOTTDIRECTOR

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1996
Location: 10440 LITLE PATUXENT PARKWAY SUITE, COLUMBIA, MD 21044-3561
County: Howard
In care of: THOMAS SCHULTZ
Primary officer: THOMAS SCHULTZ, CEO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Emailoutreach@federationforchildren.org Phone(202) 280-1990

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: January 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: CLIFTONLARSONALLEN LLP
NTEE classification: Alliances & Advocacy - Education (B01)
IRS tax category: Alliances & Advocacy - Education
Grant-giving organization: Yes