I Earn Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE MISSION OF IEARN-USA IS TO DEVELOP AND EMPOWER AN INCLUSIVE GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF STUDENTS AND EDUCATORS WHO BRIDGE CULTURAL DIVIDES AND WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.
- Income
- $4.0 million
- Spending
- $3.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 85%
- Reserves
- 1.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 92%
- Employees
- 15
- Volunteers
- 22
- Highest pay
- $192,379, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 47 out of 100. Higher than 10% of charities in its peer group (international, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 1.6 months of spending.
Debt
5 of 20It owes 58% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 1% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 22% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1585% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 2 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 64% of charities in its peer group (international, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 256 of 6 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 December 31, 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 (4)
- $2.0 million spent. IEARN-USA CONTINUED ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH AMERICAN COUNCILS FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION TO IMPLEMENT THE NSLI-Y PROGRAM. NSLI-Y IS A U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS FOR ELIGIBLE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND RECENT HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES TO LEARN LESS COMMONLY TAUGHT LANGUAGES IN SUMMER AND ACADEMIC-YEAR OVERSEAS IMMERSION PROGRAMS.IN 2025, IEARN-USA IMPLEMENTED THREE GRANT CYCLES FOR THE NSLI-Y PROGRAM:- 27 STUDENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR PROGRAM FOR 2024-2025.- 87 STUDENTS PARTICIPATED IN OVERSEAS SUMMER PROGRAMS IN 2025 AND 18 STUDENTS BEGAN THEIR ACADEMIC YEAR PROGRAMS FOR 2026-2026. IEARN-USA ALSO MANAGED DEVELOPMENT AND CONTENT PUBLISHING FOR THE NSLI-Y INTERACTIVE WEBSITE (HTTP://NSLIY-INTERACTIVE.ORG), WHICH SHOWCASES LANGUAGE LEARNING AND CROSS-CULTURAL EXPERIENCES OF NSLIY STUDENTS AND ALUMNI.
- $761,865 spent. THE KENNEDY-LUGAR YOUTH EXCHANGE AND STUDY (YES) PROGRAM:SPONSORED BY THE BUREAU OF EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS, US DEPARTMENT OF STATE. THE GOAL OF THE PROGRAM IS TO INCREASE MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE US AND PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES THROUGH PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE DIPLOMACY. THE YES PROGRAM IS AN ACADEMIC YEAR EXCHANGE PROGRAM FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. IEARN MANAGES RECRUITMENT, ON-PROGRAM-SUPPORT AND ALUMNI PROGRAMMING FOR BANGLADESH, CAMEROON, ISRAEL (ARAB COMMUNITIES), LIBERIA, MALI, PAKISTAN, SIERRA LEONE, AND SURINAME. IEARN- USA RECRUITED 154 STUDENTS FOR THE YES PROGRAM FOR THE ACADEMIC YEAR 2025-2026 FROM BANGLADESH, CAMEROON, LIBERIA, ISRAEL (ARAB COMMUNITIES), MALI, PAKISTAN, SIERRA LEONE, AND SURINAME.IEARN-USA ALSO CONTINUED IMPLEMENTING ALUMNI ACTIVITIES WITH FORMER YES STUDENTS WHO RETURNED TO THEIR HOME COUNTRIES AND UNDERTOOK COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES DRAWING FROM THEIR EXPERIENCES IN THE USA.
- $535,178 spent. STORYTELLING FOR CHANGE IS IMPLEMENTED BY IEARN-USA AND IS SUPPORTED BY THE J. CHRISTOPHER STEVENS VIRTUAL EXCHANGE INITIATIVE (JCSVEI). JCSVEI IS A U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE'S BUREAU OF EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS PROGRAM ADMINISTERED BY THE ASPEN INSTITUTE. THE PROGRAM FACILITATES CROSS-CULTURAL EXCHANGE AMONG HIGH SCHOOL-AGED YOUTH FROM ALGERIA, TUNISIA, AND THE UNITED STATES, FOCUSING ON DIGITAL STORYTELLING TO FOSTER MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING AND GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP.IN 2025, IEARN-USA SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED TWO COHORTS OF THE STORYTELLING FOR CHANGE PROGRAM. EACH COHORT INCLUDED A STRUCTURED CURRICULUM THAT GUIDED PARTICIPANTS THROUGH THE PRINCIPLES OF DIGITAL STORYTELLING, MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION, AND CROSS-CULTURAL COLLABORATION. THE PROGRAM WAS DELIVERED THROUGH A COMBINATION OF SYNCHRONOUS AND ASYNCHRONOUS VIRTUAL SESSIONS. A TOTAL OF 683 PARTICIPANTS WERE ENGAGED ACROSS THE TWO COHORTS. THE COUNTRY-SPECIFIC BREAKDOWN IS AS FOLLOWS:- ALGERIA - 159- TUNISIA - 231- UNITED STATES - 293
- $8,478 spent. IEARN-USA'S COMPAEROS DE CLASE GLOBALES IS A GRANT-FUNDED INITIATIVE FEATURING MULTI-ROUND VIRTUAL EXCHANGE PROGRAMS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES, GUATEMALA, AND MEXICO. THE PROGRAM CONSISTS OF SEVERAL 9-10 WEEK PROJECTS, OFFERING STUDENTS IN SPANISH-SPEAKING K-12 CLASSROOMS THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE REAL-WORLD ISSUES AND CONSIDER WHAT IT MEANS TO MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE WORLD. THE PROJECTS ARE BASED ON THE UN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS) AND ARE DESIGNED FOR INTEGRATION INTO SOCIAL STUDIES, CREATIVE AND LANGUAGE ARTS, OR STEM CURRICULA.IN 2025, IEARN-USA SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED TWO COMPAEROS DE CLASE GLOBALES PROGRAM COHORTS. THE PROGRAM WAS DELIVERED THROUGH A COMBINATION OF SYNCHRONOUS AND ASYNCHRONOUS VIRTUAL SESSIONS. A TOTAL OF 584 PARTICIPANTS SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE PROGRAM ACROSS THE TWO COHORTS. IN GUATEMALA, 10 CLASSES WITH A TOTAL OF 261 STUDENTS COMPLETED THE PROGRAM. IN MEXICO, 4 CLASSES WITH A TOTAL OF 140 STUDENTS COMPLETED THE PROGRAM. IN THE UNITED STATES, 14 CLASSES WITH A TOTAL OF 183 STUDENTS COMPLETED THE PROGRAM.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since January 1996.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 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 21, 2026.
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