Boston Debate League

Boston Debate League Incorporated

Boston, MA · United States EIN 593789722 (IRS) Youth Development
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90 / 100
Integrity score
Strong transparency

About

Our mission is to integrate argumentation and competitive debate into public schools in Boston to develop critical thinkers ready for college, career, and engagement with the world around them.

Mission

The bdl's mission is to prepare young people for college, career, and engagement with the world through debate-inspired learning in the classroom and beyond.

Focus & reach

Category
NTEE code O50
SDG alignment The 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the global agenda for ending poverty, protecting the planet, and ensuring prosperity by 2030. We tag each charity to the goals its work advances.

Verification & registration

Every mark links to the official registry entry and opens in a new tab.

IRS
Exempt Organizations · EIN 593789722
Registered
501(c)(03)
Federal tax-exempt subsection
Since 2006
Tax-deductible
IRS Publication 78 listing
Listed (Pub 78)

Integrity assessment

A score from 0 to 100 for how openly a charity shares public information across five areas: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and data recency. It does not measure programme impact. See exactly what we do and do not have →

Registration 16/20
Government registration ID on record +8
Sourced from official registry +4
Cross-referenced (2+ sources) +4
Profile not yet claimed by organization 0
Financial Transparency 24/30
No financial documents found on website 0
Financial filing on record +8
Revenue figure disclosed +6
Spending figure disclosed +6
Detailed financial breakdown disclosed +4
Governance 20/20
At least 1 officer disclosed +5
3+ officers disclosed +3
Officer titles disclosed +2
Executive compensation disclosed +4
Mission / description on file +3
Founding date on file +3
Contact Availability 10/10
Website +3
Email +3
Phone +2
Physical address +2
Data Recency 15/20
Updated within 1 year +15
Newer data needed for full score 0
Red flags 0
No red flags detected, so nothing is deducted 0

Financials

IRS Form 990
Annual revenue
$2 million
Reporting year
2025
To programmes
66%
See 5 years of financials
Revenue history, expense breakdowns, and balance sheet, free with an account.
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Leadership at a glance

Official filings
AL
Alison E••••••••
BOARD CHAIR/
CH
Charles G••••••••
BOARD MEMBER
EL
Elbert H••••••••
BOARD MEMBER
EV
Eva M••••••••
BOARD MEMBER

Similar charities

GiveRadarGiveRadar Intelligence

GiveRadar Analysis

Based on the records currently verified by GiveRadar, Boston Debate League has a complete profile, cross-referenced across 4 independent sources including the IRS.

  • It is one of the better-documented youth development charities in the United States GiveRadar currently tracks, because GiveRadar has verified its financial disclosures and its governance. Most of those have little verified data on record yet. View this cohort
  • GiveRadar holds 6 years of financial filings for this organization, the most recent for fiscal year 2025 - a deeper filing history than 90% of the 18,694 youth development charities in the United States with filings on record. See the filings
  • It has more complete contact information than nearly all comparable charities, with a verified website, email, phone and address on record. See national comparisons
GiveRadar has verified
  • government registration
  • financial records (6 filed years)
  • disclosed leadership
  • a website
  • a contact email
  • a donation page

Analysis based on GiveRadar's benchmark dataset of 2026-07-03. It describes what GiveRadar has verified, not a judgment of the organization itself.

Annual revenue
$2 million
66% to programs. Figures from IRS Form 990.
See 5 years of financials

Filing history

6 years on file from IRS Form 990: revenue, expenses, program spending, assets, and liabilities by fiscal year.

Years on record: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020.
Financial details are free with a GiveRadar account

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Tax deductibility

Whether a gift to Boston Debate League lowers your own taxes depends on where you pay them. Choose your country to see the rule that applies.

Sometimes deductible

Donations may be tax-deductible for residents of United States under local rules. Confirm with the charity directly.

This is general guidance, not tax advice. Confirm treatment with the charity or your tax advisor before donating.

Staff & volunteers

From filings and published profiles
Employees
14

Leadership & board

Official filings

Board members and senior officers on record, with disclosed pay where available.

KI
Kimberly W••••••••
Executive Director
See full names, roles, and stories

22 officers and trustees on file, free with a GiveRadar account.

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Officer names and roles come straight from official filings. We mirror the official record exactly and never edit it.

No red flags detected

Screened for the risks donors care about.
IRS revocation history None found
Open investigations None found
Governance scandals None found
Related-party deals None found
Excessive exec comp None found

Timeline

From official filings

Key dates from this charity's official filings, newest first.

FY2025
Form filed
$2.0M revenue, IRS Form 990
FY2024
Form filed
$2.0M revenue, IRS Form 990
FY2023
Form filed
$3.2M revenue, IRS Form 990
FY2022
Form filed
$2.3M revenue, IRS Form 990
FY2021
Form filed
$2.2M revenue, IRS Form 990
FY2020
Form filed
$2.5M revenue, IRS Form 990

In the news

From public news

No recent news coverage found

News coverage will appear here when articles mention this organization.

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How it stacks up against peers

Compared with 8 similar youth development charities in United States.

Program spending Behind peer average
This charity
66% Peer average
82%
CEO comp as % of revenue Behind peer average
This charity
7.54% Peer average
3.41%
Integrity Assessment Ahead of peers
This charity
90 Peer average
90

Cause areas in United States

Charities working in each area, this charity's highlighted.

Human Services
322,681
Education
195,585
Arts & Culture
133,131
Advocacy & Civil Rights
128,026
Religion
114,638
Health
98,864
Community Development
56,086
Youth Development
53,450
See all cause areas

Sources and verification

Registration and legal identity
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Tax Exempt Organization Search
Financial filings
IRS Form 990 filings · Fiscal year 2025 most recent on file.
Officers and trustees
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Tax Exempt Organization Search · 71 disclosed in the public registry.
News and media coverage
GDELT Project + Google News
Supplementary verification
Charity Navigator

What we know and don't know

Every data point we track for this charity, and whether we have found it. Disclosure only, never a judgment of the charity's work.

Financial data
Named leadership
Executive pay
Government registration
Mission statement
Official website
Headquarters address
Direct contact
Tax-deductibility
Founding date
Programs & activities

Data freshness

How current this profile is, and when we last checked it against the official source.

Last updated
August 30, 2026
Profile edits and newly added data
Registry checked
August 30, 2026
Reconciled with the official source
Latest financials
Financial year 2025
Most recent filing on record
Profile completeness
100%
Data points we track that are filled in

Methodology

GiveRadar builds each profile primarily from official government charity registries, supplemented where available by third-party nonprofit databases and news archives, and combines it into a single 0-100 integrity assessment. The exact sources for this charity are listed above. We don't take a cut of any donation, ever.

Read full methodology
Are you the owner or a board member?

If you represent this organization and want to correct or update its data, you can claim this listing to edit details yourself, or email info@giveradar.com with the correct information. We review every request and respond within 30 days.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about Boston Debate League

Boston Debate League is a registered youth development nonprofit based in Boston, MA, United States. It is registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It was founded in 2005 and has been operating for 21 years. Its EIN is 593789722. According to GiveRadar's records, it holds active tax-deductible status on the IRS Publication 78 list, which means donations are tax-deductible and the organization is in good standing with the IRS. GiveRadar's Integrity Assessment for the organization is 90/100, which reflects how much public information is available, not whether the charity is legitimate. The organization reports $2M in annual revenue. 71 officers and directors are publicly disclosed. No red flags have been detected.

Boston Debate League's Executive Director, Kimberly Willingham, received $152,500 in reported compensation in its most recent filing (2025). This figure comes straight from the organization's official filing and covers salary plus other reportable pay. Executive pay generally scales with the size and complexity of a nonprofit, so it is best read alongside the organization's revenue and what it does.

Based on official filings, Boston Debate League has $2M in annual revenue. It allocates 66% of expenses to programs and services. This is below the average of 82% for youth development charities in United States. Create a free GiveRadar account to view the complete financial breakdown with year-over-year trends.

Our mission is to integrate argumentation and competitive debate into public schools in Boston to develop critical thinkers ready for college, career, and engagement with the world around them. Boston Debate League is classified as a youth development organization registered in United States. The organization was founded in 2005.

Boston Debate League is classified as a Youth Development organization, registered in United States. It operates as a Publicly-supported charity (509(a)(2)). By size, it is categorized as a medium organization. It has $2M in annual revenue. The organization has 71 disclosed officers and directors.

Boston Debate League's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 593789722. This is the organization's IRS tax identification number; you can use it to verify tax-exempt status and to look up its Form 990 filings with the IRS.

Boston Debate League is located in Boston, MA, United States. The organization was established in 2005 and has been active for 21 years.

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Quick facts about Boston Debate League

What is Boston Debate League?
Boston Debate League is a youth development publicly-supported charity (509(a)(2)) based in Boston, United States. Our mission is to integrate argumentation and competitive debate into public schools in Boston to develop critical thinkers ready for college, career, and engagement with the world around them.
When was Boston Debate League founded?
Boston Debate League was founded in 2005.
Who leads Boston Debate League?
Kimberly Willingham serves as Executive Director.
Where is Boston Debate League located?
Headquartered in Boston, MA, United States.
What is Boston Debate League's annual budget?
Annual revenue for fiscal year 2025 is $2 million. 66% of expenses go to program services.
Is Boston Debate League trustworthy?
Boston Debate League has a GiveRadar Integrity Assessment of 90 out of 100 (Strong transparency). The score reflects public-data transparency: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and how recently data was refreshed. It does not measure program impact.
What is Boston Debate League's registration number?
IRS EIN: 593789722.
What is Boston Debate League's website?
http://www.bostondebate.org