826 Valencia
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
826 Valencia is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization dedicated to supportingstudents ages 6 to 18 with their writing skills and helping teachers get theirstudents excited about writing. Our work is based on the understanding that strongwriting skills are fundamental to future success and that great leaps in learningcan be made when skilled tutors work one-on-one with students.
- Income
- $10.1 million
- Spending
- $6.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 77%
- Reserves
- 23 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 81%
- Employees
- 76
- Volunteers
- 720
- Highest pay
- $243,358, executive dir.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 94% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 23.0 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 12% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 31% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 33% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1577% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 11 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 50% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2518 of 18 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (7)
- $1.2 million spent. Workshops:In our Workshops program, we served 438 students during the 2024-2025 school year. This year, we adapted to our students needs and energy, and decided to do more writing projects that incorporated illustrations and creativity. A highlight was the October haunted house project, where students developed a sales pitch for their haunted house and then built a diorama. At the end of the project, students presented their sales pitch, showcasing all their haunted amenities.
- $1.1 million spent. In-School Programs: 826 Valencia partners with public schools throughout San Francisco to collaboratively develop writing curricula and bring 826 staff and volunteer tutors into partner schools, where we provide individualized writing lessons and tutoring. In FY25, we supported 48 teachers and 1,650 students at 13 schools. Our Black Student Cohort, an auxiliary program to our In-Schools programming, served 21 elementary school students as well.
- $1.0 million spent. Field Trip Programs: 826 Valencia hosts Storytelling & Bookmaking and Choose Your Own Adventure writing field trips for elementary students at its Mission Center and podcasting field trips for middle and high schools at its Tenderloin Center. In FY25, we served 4,172 students with 195 field trips. Our podcasting field trips yielded 1,947 student podcasts that reached 29,147 listeners through our SoundCloud page.
- $721,751 spent. After-School Programs:826 Valencia provides free after-school tutoring and writing support at five locations in San Francisco, including our three Writing Centers and our partner schools, Buena Vista Horace Mann (BVHM) and Dr. Charles R. Drew Preparatory Academy. Students enroll for a minimum of two days per week for individualized homework support and writing projects. After-school programs served 333 students in 2024-25. One highlight was a science-themed writing project at our Mission Center, where students imagined discovering a new plant or animal species. This writing project culminated in professionally produced species posters created by 826s design team, which were displayed in our Mission writing center.
- $603,151 spent. Leadership and Future Pathways:826 provides middle and high schoolers with opportunities to build skills, knowledge, and resources that strengthen the high school-to-college-to-career pathway. In FY25, we awarded five $20,000 college scholarships to graduating seniors who will also receive ongoing college persistence and completion support from our partner ScholarMatch. We provided another 204 twelfth-graders with college application and essay support through in-person workshops, both at our writing centers and with partner schools. Our Youth Leadership Advisory Board, Black Literary Achievement Club, and Middle School Leadership Program offered paid internships, leadership development, and career readiness support to 94 teens. We also provided hands-on workforce development experience and stipends to 62 high school and college students and transitional-aged youth who interned with our education, volunteer, design, and store teams.
- $442,880 spent. Summer Workshops and Camps:We served 792 students in summer 2025 through project-based writing camps and workshops. Programs included: A) Exploring Words Summer Camp, where students in grades 3-5 work on writing projects that included persuasive writing, screenwriting, field journals, identity/Narrative writing, community mural poetry, and creating fantasy worlds; B) Exploring Leadership Summer Camp, where students in grades 6-8 develop leadership and communication skills by exploring issues that face their communities; C) Young Author's Workshop (YAW), an creative writing camp where high schoolers explore a range of literary genres and compose literary works; and D) writing workshops for students in grades 3-8 through our community partners in the Tenderloin.
- $302,911 spent. Other Program Accomplishments include the operation of two retail stores (Mission District, Mission Bay). The stores sell educational materials, books for children, and other whimsical childrens toys, and serve as a community touchpoint in the neighborhoods where we operate. Other Programs also include the design and publishing infrastructure for our various publishing programs, our workforce development program for AmeriCorps associates and paid interns, and our volunteer program.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since October 2003.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.