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research dossier

National Black Womens Justice Institite Inc

Brooklyn, NY · EIN 463198451 · Form 990 · FY2024 · Medium ($1M-$10M) · nbwji.org
revenue
$1.3M
expenses
$1.1M
net assets
$1.4M
employees
10
volunteers
5
program ratio
81%
profile · synthesized from sources

The National Black Women’s Justice Institute is a Black women-led nonprofit focused on ending the criminalization of Black women, girls, and gender-nonconforming people through research, capacity building, and public education. The organization centers healing-centered justice and produces data-driven solutions to disrupt school-to-confinement pathways and improve reentry services. It operates nationally with a focus on racial, gender, and criminal justice intersectionality.

named programs · 5 · from sources

What they call their work

Black Girls’ Pushout from School Data Hub
Interactive data tool that tracks punitive discipline practices pushing Black girls out of school and provides evidence for policy and practice change.
Book Club Conversations
Series spotlighting books by Black women that explore the impact of incarceration on Black women and girls, fostering public education and community dialogue.
CARES Initiative
National training and resource hub helping schools and educators adopt trauma-informed, culturally affirming, and gender-sensitive practices to support Black girls and gender-expansive youth.
Sisters in Solidarity Reentry Network
A collaborative network providing technical assistance, grants, and peer learning opportunities to support formerly incarcerated Black women in advancing culturally-affirming, gender-responsive, and trauma-informed reentry services.
Youth Advisory Committees
Program that engages Black girls and young adults in participatory research and leadership roles, offering stipends to ensure their lived experiences inform organizational work.
activities · 7 groups

What they do

  • Criminal Justice Policy Advocacy 2 activities
    • Co-lead policy advocacy to end school pushout and protect youth survivors
      Co-leads the Justice for Youth Survivors Initiative and provides research-informed advocacy to advance trauma-informed, gender-responsive policies that prevent youth survivors of gender-based violence from entering the legal system and supports federal legislation such as the End PUSHOUT Act.
    • Publish advocacy content on gender-responsive justice and reentry
      Produces and disseminates advocacy materials such as blog posts, curated reading lists, and policy briefs that highlight systemic inequities faced by Black women and girls in the criminal legal system, promoting healing-centered, gender-responsive alternatives to incarceration and reentry solutions.
  • Justice System Innovation & Inclusion Programs 2 activities
    • Develop and disseminate gender-responsive justice toolkits
      Created and released the "Dignity in Reentry" toolkit and similar resources designed to reimagine reentry systems through the leadership of Black women, emphasizing healing-centered, culturally affirming, and gender-responsive policy and practice change.
    • Support community-led reentry and school safety initiatives
      Strengthens community-led solutions through initiatives like the Sisters in Solidarity Reentry Network and the Creating, Affirming, Responsive, and Equitable Schools (CARES) Initiative, offering grants, peer learning, technical assistance, and resources to organizations advancing gender-responsive reentry services and safe school environments for Black girls and gender-expansive youth.
  • Law Enforcement Professional Development 1 activity
    • Deliver training and technical assistance to improve systems' responses
      Provides training for law enforcement, probation officers, and victim services providers on identifying and responding to the needs of commercially sexually exploited children and individuals impacted by the criminal legal system, with curricula focused on cultural humility, gender responsiveness, and trauma-informed care.
  • Program Evaluation and Impact Research 1 activity
    • Evaluate community programs for formerly incarcerated women and girls of color
      Conducts evaluations of initiatives serving formerly incarcerated women and girls of color, including alternative education programs for returning students and the California Wellness Foundation’s Women’s Initiatives, assessing impact on service access, health outcomes, and reentry support.
  • School-Based Mental Health and Family Support 1 activity
    • Expand culturally-competent mental health services for Black girls and youth of color
      Expands access to culturally-competent and gender-responsive mental health services tailored to Black girls and other youth of color, with a focus on healing-centered approaches within school and community settings.
  • Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention Education 1 activity
    • Implement educational programs to prevent gender-based violence in schools
      Works directly with schools to address gender-based violence and sexual harassment affecting Black girls by implementing prevention curricula such as Boys as Allies, which educates Black boys and young men aged 11–18 on gender equity and allyship, and by providing stipends to youth advisory committees leading participatory research to inform organizational strategy.
  • Uncategorized 2 activities
    • Conduct research on the criminalization and health needs of Black women and girls
      Conducts qualitative and quantitative research on the intersectional impacts of policing, incarceration, and reentry on Black women, trans, and gender nonconforming people, including studies on health needs post-incarceration, school discipline trends, and encounters with law enforcement. Research includes analysis of national datasets and community-based participatory methods.
    • Develop data tools and public resources to combat school pushout
      Produces interactive data tools and visualizations, including the Black Girls’ Pushout from School Data Hub and a filterable tool using U.S. Department of Education Civil Rights Data, to document and communicate punitive discipline trends affecting Black girls in schools from 2011 to 2022, supporting advocacy and policy reform.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$1.26M
Contributions & grants$1.15M92%
Program service revenue$104K8%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$2K
expenses
Total expenses$1.13M
Program expenses81%
Admin / overhead13%
Fundraising6%
Salaries & benefits$769K
Grants paid out$108K
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$1.47M
Cash$1.13M
Investments$0
Liabilities$19K
Net assets$1.45M
Liquid reserves12.0 mo
4 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +85.1%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 2
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
Sydney McKinney Executive Director 40 $197K
Janae Bonsu-Love Director of Research & Advocacy 40 $124K
board members · 5
  • Ayanna Curry — Secretary
  • Isis Sapp-Grant — Treasurer
  • Monique Couvson — Board Chair
  • Nicole York — Board Member
  • Robert Rooks — Board Member
relationships · 33

Who they work with

  • 'metoo'. International Partner — Dr. Ayanna D. Maddox served as a theory of change consultant and writer for 'metoo'. International.
  • American Civil Liberties Union Partner — Dr. Ayanna D. Maddox has organizing experience with the ACLU.
  • American Institutes of Research Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • Black women and girls who have been incarcerated Partner — Collaborates with formerly incarcerated Black women and girls in developing and amplifying community-led solutions.
  • Borealis Philanthropy Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Boys as Allies Partner — Collaborates on an educational curriculum for Black boys and young men to understand and prevent gender-based violence against Black girls.
  • California Wellness Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • California Wellness Foundation Funder — Funded the Women’s Initiatives that NBWJI evaluated.
  • California Wellness Foundation Partner — Partnered with NBWJI to evaluate the impact of its Women's Initiatives.
  • Center on Gender Justice & Opportunity at Georgetown Law Partner — Co-leads the Justice for Youth Survivors Initiative with NBWJI.
  • Communities for Just Schools Fund Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women Government — Government partner collaborating with the organization
  • Department of Justice’s Office of Violence Against Women Government — Partnered with NBWJI to build the capacity of technical assistance providers serving African American/African Diaspora communities to reduce domestic and intimate partner violence and sexual assault.
  • Focus for Health Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Ford Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Girls Rights Project Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • GoFundMe Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • Grantmakers for Girls of Color Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Links Incorporated Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • Magellen Cares Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • McDonald’s Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • Mentor Partner — Collaborated on the EMERGE evaluation of an alternative education program for girls of color.
  • Mentor Partner — NBWJI is evaluating EMERGE, an alternative education program run by Mentor for girls of color returning to school from confinement.
  • Ms. Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • NFL Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • Novo Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Organizations that support formerly incarcerated women and girls Partner — Partners with organizations supporting formerly incarcerated Black women and girls to strengthen community-led solutions.
  • Schott Foundation Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
  • Sony Music Partner — Corporate partner collaborating with the organization
  • The California Endowment Funder — Foundation partner supporting the organization
+ 3 more
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Community-Led Innovation and Capacity Building
    methodology: community_led_innovation
    By developing and elevating community-led solutions and building systems capacity, we create sustainable, non-harmful supports for Black women and girls, because lasting change requires shifting power and resources to those most impacted.
  • Data-Informed Advocacy and Systems Change
    methodology: data_driven
    By generating rigorous, evidence-informed research and data, we drive policy advocacy and systems transformation that improves safety and wellbeing for Black girls and gender-expansive youth, because data rooted in community experience creates credible leverage for institutional change.
  • Decriminalizing Survival and Gender-Based Violence Responses
    methodology: decriminalizing_survival
    By challenging policies that criminalize survivors of gender-based violence and promoting protective, trauma-informed systems, we increase safety for Black women and girls, because criminalization exacerbates harm rather than providing protection.
  • Healing-Centered Justice Framework
    methodology: healing-centered justice
    By centering healing, trauma-informed care, and restorative practices over punishment, we transform systems that criminalize Black women and girls, because addressing root trauma and systemic harm leads to more just and effective outcomes than punitive approaches.
  • Intersectional and Lived Experience-Centered Approach
    methodology: intersectional_framework
    By grounding research and advocacy in the lived experiences of Black women, girls, and gender-expansive people and applying an intersectional lens, we produce more accurate and impactful policy solutions, because systemic inequities are compounded by race, gender, and trauma and must be addressed together.