New York · Nonprofit
THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC
THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC (New York) receives grants from 14 organizations whose IRS filings report $319,368 to it, the largest being THE NEW YORK URBAN LEAGUE INC ($70,970). 9 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $360k
- Funders on record
- 14
- Grants received
- $319k
- Net assets
- $172k
What The Brooklyn Steppers Inc does
Mission
The Brooklyn Steppers Inc. Seeks to develop a commitment to excellence in young people through innovative quality performance arts education and practical experience in arts related careers.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
On its FY2024 return the organization reported starting a significant new program and a significant change in how it conducts a program.
For descriptions of new programs, see explanation for pt iii, line 4d other programs
Its own explanation, from Schedule O of that return (Part III, line 2).
For the summer rising percussion program, we did not partner with teh new york city department of education this year
Its own explanation, from Schedule O of that return (Part III, line 3).
School music and dance residencies - brought high-quality arts instruction to schools across new york city and beyond. Students received hands-on training in marching percussion (snare drums, bass drums, tenor drums, cymbals, buckets, djembes) and urban contemporary dance rooted in the african diaspora. The program emphasized musical skill, discipline, teamwork, and cultural awareness. Residencies were implemented at hawtree creek middle school in queens, the uncommon charter school network in brooklyn, rochester prep high school in rochester, public school 316 in brooklyn, midwood high school in brooklyn, university heights high school in the bronxs, and after- school all-stars/achievement first.
$143,735 spent$66,637 earned by the program61% of program spendingBksteppers saturday drum workshop - served apporximately 53 students aged 6 to 18, offering weekly instruction in hbcu-style marching percussion. The program included biannual performances at community events and emphasized consistency, community, and cultural expression
$17,745 spent$8,227 earned by the program8% of program spendingBksteppers pro drumline - provided paid performance opportunities for 15 talented percussionists, primarily bksteppers alumni and hbcu band graduates. These performers participated in high-profile events, including performances at carnegie hall and the dvf incharge event. The program supports artist visibility, professional development, and income generation within the marching arts.
$12,187 spent$5,650 earned by the program5% of program spendingX-factor drumline - based in mount vernon, ny, served 27 students through a revenue-generating performance ensemble. The program combined showstyle drumming with dance, stick tricks, and crowd interaction. Students performed at local parades and community events, transforming everyday gatherings into memorable celebrations of youth and rhythm.
$8,628 spent$4,000 earned by the program4% of program spendingTeam-building workshop - bksteppers partnered with the nyc department of education arts office to lead a rhythm-based team-building workshop for 25 arts professionals. The session supported communication and collaboration within the deparment and demonstrated the power of percussion in professional development settings.
$3,775 spent$1,750 earned by the program2% of program spendingNext wave percussion festival - launched this year as a citywide celebration of student musicianship. Hosted at laguardia community college, the event featured workshops and performances by eight school drumlines and 111 student performers. It concluded with a mass ensemble finale. The festival was well- received by educators and has strong momentum.
$50,149 spent$23,250 earned by the program21% of program spending
The 6 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $236,219.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2023, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2023, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2023 to 2024, from $124k to $157k (+27%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2023 25% · 2024 17% · 2025 49%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
70% of THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC’s revenue is contributions — more donation-reliant than the typical peer (64% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 1 of the last 3 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
Antonio Thompson
Executive director
Board chair
Jeremy King
Boad chair
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 9 funders, grant income rose $3k → $56k.
2 of 14 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 17% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 22% of grant income, and it takes 4 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 4 funders to its left
39% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 100% · 2019 100% · 2020 50% · 2021 70% · 2022 55% · 2023 28% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How long its funders stay
60% of THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 64% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
74% of THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC's grant income comes from New York funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $54k arriving through sponsors registered in 2 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC runs a healthier operating margin than half of the 11,634 arts & culture nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 11,634 arts & culture nonprofits $100k–$1M, FY2025
Organizations like THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In New York
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
72% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
94%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC?
- THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC (New York) receives grants from 14 organizations whose IRS filings report $319,368 to it, the largest being THE NEW YORK URBAN LEAGUE INC ($70,970). 9 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC have?
- IRS filings report 14 organizations giving $319,368 in grants to THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC, 9 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC?
- THE NEW YORK URBAN LEAGUE INC is the largest funder on record, with $70,970 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like THE BROOKLYN STEPPERS INC find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in New York. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Brooklyn Steppers →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2023–2025), and the filings of 14 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing