Story Pirates Changemakers

What Story Pirates Changemakers does

Story Pirates Changemakers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN 02-0720786), operating as a DBA of Creative Minds NYC Inc. and serving as the nonprofit arm of The Story Pirates. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in New York City, the organization delivers free creative writing and storytelling programs primarily to under-resourced Title I elementary schools and grades 3-4 students, supplemented by direct consumer reach through its flagship media property, the Story Pirates Podcast.

Its core offerings include the multi-award-winning Story Pirates Podcast (#1 podcast for kids and families globally, 100M+ downloads, Season 8), Story Quest (free narrative-writing mini-series for Title I schools), Story Love (volunteer-powered personalized story response program recognized with Bronze Anthem and Silver Shorty Impact awards), Story Creation Zone (45-minute improvisational school assemblies), SPTV (educational video show), and Creator Club (subscription digital curriculum for educators). The organization's methodology pairs experienced teachers with theater artists, visual artists, and musicians, and features collaborations with top comedians, best-selling authors, and notable public endorsers including Jon Stewart.

The revenue model is diversified across tax-deductible individual donations (including a Sharing Seats Circle monthly giving program), time-limited crowdfunding campaigns with tiered perks, corporate Story Love sponsorships (Adobe, Amazon, Comcast NBCUniversal, Salesforce, Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase, DreamWorks, Bloomberg Philanthropies), and Creator Club subscription revenue. Distribution is hybrid: global via podcast platforms and SPTV, and direct-to-schools within the United States. The organization has 1-10 employees and is currently conducting public fundraising after disclosing it does not have adequate funding to complete the current season of its flagship podcast.

Name

Story Pirates Changemakers

Legal name

Creative Minds NYC Inc.

Website

https://storypirateschangemakers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Story Pirates Changemakers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers free creative writing and storytelling programs to under-resourced Title I schools, anchored by the award-winning Story Pirates Podcast reaching roughly one million people monthly and supported primarily through corporate sponsorships and individual donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Nonprofit Services

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), Fine Arts Schools (611610), Performing Arts Companies (7111)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s & YA Writing Workshops (EDAMAMAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Online & Hybrid Creative Writing Workshops (EDAMAMAL), Playwriting & Scriptwriting Workshops (Stage) (EDAMAMAD)

Keywords

• Creative writing education
• Educational nonprofit programs
• Children's literacy initiatives
• Title I school services
• Arts integration learning

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individual supporters, including one-time gifts and recurring contributions through the Sharing Seats Circle monthly giving program.
2. Crowdfunding Campaigns: Time-limited crowdfunding campaigns with perks such as custom cameos ($150) and story adaptations ($5,000).
3. Corporate Volunteer Programs: Corporate sponsors (Adobe, Amazon, Comcast NBCUniversal, Salesforce, Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase, and others) fund Story Love volunteer events where employees read and respond to children's stories.
4. Creator Club Subscriptions: Digital membership providing access to creative writing curricular videos, standards-based activities, lesson plans aligned with podcast episodes, and additional resources for classroom and homeschool educators.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Story Pirates Changemakers provides free creative writing education programs, an award-winning children's podcast, live school assemblies, and volunteer-powered personalized story response services to under-resourced elementary schools and communities. Its offerings include Story Quest (a free audio-adventure creative writing mini-series for Title I schools), Story Creation Zone (45-minute improvised assemblies), Story Love (volunteer response program writing 30,000 notes annually), SPTV video content, and Creator Club (a subscription-based educator resource library).

Product overview

Story Pirates Changemakers is the nonprofit arm of The Story Pirates, offering a portfolio of educational media and creative writing programs designed to celebrate the words and ideas of young people. The core offerings include the award-winning Story Pirates Podcast, Story Quest (a free creative writing program for Title I schools), Story Love (volunteer-powered story response program), and SPTV (educational video content). Additional programs include the Story Creation Zone school assembly program and the Creator Club subscription for educators. The organization provides free and low-cost programs primarily to under-resourced schools and communities, with plans to expand Story Pirates Satellites and Spanish-language programming in 2026.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Story Quest: Creative writing mini-series available at no cost for Title I schools, intended for 3rd and 4th-grade students.
• Story Love
• SPTV
• Creator Club
• Story Creation Zone

Products and services

• Story Pirates Podcast Multi-award-winning educational podcast featuring stories written by children and performed by top comedians and musicians; reaches approximately one million people monthly and has crossed 100 million downloads.
• Story Quest Free creative writing mini-series available at no cost for Title I schools, featuring an audio adventure intended for 3rd and 4th-grade students that demonstrates narrative writing fundamentals.
• Story Love Volunteer-powered program that reads and responds to every story submitted by children, providing personalized notes that encourage young authors. Recognized with a Bronze Anthem Award and Silver Shorty Impact award.
• Story Creation Zone 45-minute school assembly program where students collectively write an original story that the Story Pirates perform on the spot, teaching basic story writing concepts through fully improvised shows.
• SPTV (Story Pirates Television) Video show helping kids use their imaginations to write great stories; includes episodes with creative writing lessons, activity guides, and opportunities for kids to submit their own stories.
• Creator Club Monthly subscription digital membership providing educators access to a growing library of creative writing curricular videos, standards-based activities, lesson plans aligned with Story Pirates Podcast episodes, and resources for in-person and asynchronous writing instruction.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500,000+ kids reached since 2005
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered major and minor.

• AdobemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate Story Love sponsor providing volunteer programs where employees read and respond to children's stories.
• Comcast NBCUniversalmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate Story Love sponsor supporting arts and literacy programming for under-resourced schools.
• SalesforcemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate Story Love sponsor enabling volunteer engagement for children's creative writing programs.
• MicrosoftmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate Story Love sponsor supporting educational access initiatives.
• DreamWorksminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate Story Love sponsor supporting creative writing initiatives for children.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Moth (Education Programs): The Moth runs storytelling education programs including the StorySLAM and education outreach for youth. Both organizations emphasize celebrating young people's authentic stories and ideas, with similar creative writing/performing arts education methodology for students.
• StoryCorps: StoryCorps is a national nonprofit dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing the stories of Americans, with significant education programs. Both share a mission of amplifying people's authentic stories and ideas on a global stage through nonprofit media programming.
• New Victory Theater: New Victory Theater is NYC's award-winning performing arts venue dedicated to bringing performing arts to kids and schools, including Title I programs. Both serve elementary school populations with arts-integration education programs at no cost to under-resourced schools.
• Behind the Book: Behind the Book is a NYC-based literacy nonprofit that brings authors and their books into Title I schools. Both organizations serve under-resourced elementary school communities with author-led creative writing and literacy programming in New York and beyond.
• Imagination Stage: Imagination Stage is a Maryland-based professional theater for young audiences offering performances and education programs. Comparable as a children's theater nonprofit offering school assembly programs (similar to Story Creation Zone) and creative arts education for elementary students.
• 826 National: 826 National operates nonprofit creative writing and publishing programs for underserved youth ages 6-18. Both organizations share the mission of amplifying children's voices through creative writing in Title I and under-resourced school settings, making them the closest direct peer in the kids' creative writing nonprofit space.
• National Writing Project: National Writing Project is a national network focused on improving writing education and teacher development. Both share commitment to narrative writing fundamentals and standards-aligned creative writing instruction for students and educators.

Emerging players

• Pinna (Kids Podcast Network): Pinna is an ad-free kids podcast subscription service featuring original audio programming. Comparable in operating a subscription-based podcast platform serving the same kids/families audience as Story Pirates Podcast.
• Brains On! (American Public Media): Brains On! is a popular science podcast for kids produced by American Public Media. Both produce award-winning educational audio content for elementary-age audiences, distributed through major podcast platforms.

Broad incumbents

• PBS Kids: PBS Kids is the leading free educational media brand for children, offering broadcast and digital programming. Story Pirates explicitly references PBS as a peer facing similar funding challenges, and operates in the same free educational media space for kids and families.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sp_changemakers
• Facebookfacebook.com/storypirateschangemakers

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Story Pirates Changemakers