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Helen Keller International

EIN 13-5562162 · New York, NY

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood71 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceIndependently evaluatedHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

GUIDED BY HER REMARKABLE LEGACY OF ITS CO-FOUNDER, HELEN KELLER, HELEN KELLER INTL PARTNERS WITH COMMUNITIES THAT ARE STRIVING TO OVERCOME LONGSTANDING CYCLES OF POVERTY. BY DELIVERING THE ESSENTIAL BUILDING BLOCKS OF GOOD HEALTH, SOUND NUTRITION, AND CLEAR VISION, WE HELP MILLIONS OF PEOPLE CREATE LASTING CHANGE IN THEIR OWN LIVES. WORKING IN 20 COUNTRIES WITH NEARLY 1,000 STAFF ACROSS AFRICA, ASIA, EUROPE, AND THE UNITED STATES, AND TOGETHER WITH A GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF SUPPORTERS, WE HELP ENSURE EVERY PERSON HAS THE OPPORTUNITY AS HELEN DID TO REACH THEIR TRUE POTENTIAL.

Income
$120.2 million
Spending
$115.3 million
Spent on programs
82%
Reserves
2.5 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 79%
Employees
159
Volunteers
32
Highest pay
$450,270, president & ceo - current

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

Good: 71 out of 100. Higher than 63% of charities in its peer group (international, over $100m).

  • Reserves

    10 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 2.5 months of spending.

  • Debt

    16 of 20

    It owes 26% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 4% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 59% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    82% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 4 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 21% of charities in its peer group (international, over $100m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    30 of 30 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports 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

Independently evaluated. An independent evaluator has assessed its work and recommends it.

  • GiveWell: Named a Top Charity for its vitamin A supplementation program. See the evaluation Checked September 29, 2026.
  • The Life You Can Save: Listed among its recommended charities. See the evaluation Checked September 29, 2026.

Results it reports

  • Supported vision screenings for more than 136,000 students and adults globally, 119,600 of them in the United States.Work delivered
  • Provided free eyeglasses to over 31,600 people (78%) of those diagnosed with refractive error.Work delivered
  • Reached over 47 million children under five with two doses of vitamin A supplementation, partnering with 14 African governments.Work delivered
  • Treated more than 32.3 million individuals for at least one of five neglected tropical diseases in seven African countries.Work delivered
  • Screened more than 1.6 million individuals for trachoma.Work delivered
  • Supported surgery for over 2,400 people affected by trichiasis.Work delivered

Read from the return by an AI model and shown only where the wording was found in the return. These are the charity's own figures.

Programs described in its return (3)
  1. $4.3 million spent. EYEHEALTH: CURRENTLY 1 IN 7 PEOPLE WORLDWIDE ARE BLIND OR LIVING WITH SOME FORM OF VISION LOSS, YET A STAGGERING 90% OF VISION LOSS IS PREVENTABLE OR TREATABLE. VISION LOSS CAN HAVE AN INCREDIBLE IMPACT ON PEOPLE'S QUALITY OF LIFE, IMPACTING CHILDREN AND FAMILY MEMBERS' ABILITY TO LEARN, FORM FRIENDSHIPS, EARN A LIVING, AND TO REMAIN SAFE. IT CAN EVEN SET THEM ON A COURSE FOR GENERATIONS OF POVERTY. TO PROTECT VISION, HELEN KELLER INTL PARTNERS WITH COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL HEALTH NETWORKS TO IMPROVE THEIR ABILITY TO PROVIDE HIGH-QUALITY EYE HEALTH SERVICES TO CHILDREN AND ADULTS WHO DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO ADEQUATE, AFFORDABLE CARE. IN AFRICA AND ASIA, WE TRAIN, EQUIP, AND PROVIDE ONGOING SUPPORT TO CLINICIANS HELPING THEM TREAT PEOPLE WITH CATARACT, REFRACTIVE ERROR, AND DIABETIC RETINOPATHY. IN THE UNITED STATES, WE PARTNER WITH SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS TO PROVIDE VISION SCREENINGS, EYE EXAMS, AND PRESCRIPTION GLASSES FOR VULNERABLE CHILDREN AND ADULTS. LAST YEAR WE SUPPORTED VISIONS SCREENINGS FOR MORE THAN 136,000 STUDENTS AND ADULTS GLOBALLY, OF WHICH 119,600 RESIDED IN THE UNITED STATES, AND PROVIDED FREE EYEGLASSES TO OVER 31,600 (OR 78%) OF THOSE DIAGNOSED WITH REFRACTIVE ERROR. IN 14 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD, HELEN KELLER IS DELIVERING VISION-PROTECTING VITAMIN A TO MILLIONS OF CHILDREN, STAVING OFF BLINDNESS AND BUILDING IMMUNE SYSTEMS.
  2. $76.9 million spent. NUTRITION: TODAY AS MANY AS 318 MILLION FACE ACUTE LEVELS OF FOOD INSECURITY. ONGOING STRESSORS INCLUDING CLIMATE CHANGE, RISING INFLATION, AND INSTABILITY AND CONFLICTS AROUND THE WORLD HAVE MADE NUTRITIOUS FOOD UNAFFORDABLE OR INACCESSIBLE TO MILLIONS OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES AT GREATEST RISK. TO REDUCE MALNUTRITION, HELEN KELLER INTL PARTNERS WITH GOVERNMENTS, COMMUNITIES, COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS, AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS IN AFRICA AND ASIA TO REACH INFANTS, CHILDREN, MOTHERS, AND FAMILIES WITH CLIMATE-SMART FARMING TRAINING, BREASTFEEDING SUPPORT, ASSESSMENT AND TREATMENT OF MALNUTRITION, COMPLEMENTARY HIGH-NUTRIENT FOODS, AND CRITICAL VITAMINS AND NUTRIENTS LIKE IMMUNE-BUILDING VITAMIN A.LAST YEAR, HELEN KELLER PARTNERED WITH 14 AFRICAN GOVERNMENTS TO REACH OVER 47 MILLION CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF FIVE WITH TWO DOSES OF VITAMIN A SUPPLEMENTATION. WE ALSO CONTINUED OUR SUPPORT TO GOVERNMENTS AND PRIVATE SECTOR COMPANIES IN LARGE SCALE FOOD FORTIFICATION IN SEVERAL COUNTRIES ACROSS AFRICA (BURKINA FASO, NIGERIA, AND SENEGAL) TO EXPLORE FORTIFICATION OF BOUILLON CUBES. WE ESTIMATE HAVING REACHED MORE THAN 2.2 MILLION FAMILIES WITH BETTER ACCESS TO MICRONUTRIENT-RICH FOODS SINCE WE FIRST BEGAN SUPPORTING THESE APPROACHES MORE THAN THREE DECADES AGO.
  3. $13.1 million spent. NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES: NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES INCLUDING BLINDING TRACHOMA, LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS, RIVER BLINDNESS, SCHISTOSOMIASIS, AND INTESTINAL WORMS IMPACT MORE THAN 1 BILLION PEOPLE GLOBALLY. THESE MAINLY PARASITIC, VIRAL, OR BACTERIAL DISEASES THAT CAN CAUSE A HOST OF PAINFUL PHYSICAL DISABILITIES, LOST ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES, AND SOCIAL STIGMA ARE MOST PREVALENT IN LOWER INCOME COUNTRIES THAT LACK ADEQUATE HEALTHCARE. HELEN KELLER INTL PARTNERS WITH MINISTRIES OF HEALTH, LOCAL LEADERS, AND COMMUNITIES TO PREVENT, TREAT, AND ELIMINATE THESE NEGLECTED DISEASES. A CORNERSTONE OF THE WORK INVOLVES MASS DRUG ADMINISTRATION EVENTS WHERE COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS DISTRIBUTE CRITICAL MEDICATIONS TO BOTH TREAT AND CURB THE SPREAD OF THESE DISEASES. DURING 2025 ALONE, WE WORKED WITH MINISTRIES OF HEALTH TO TREAT MORE THAN 32.3 MILLION INDIVIDUALS FOR AT LEAST ONE OF THESE FIVE DISEASES IN SEVEN AFRICAN COUNTRIES (BURKINA FASO, CAMEROON, GUINEA, MALI, NIGER, NIGERIA AND SIERRA LEONE), CONTRIBUTING GREATLY TO NATIONAL EFFORTS TOWARDS THEIR CONTROL AND ELIMINATION. HELEN KELLER IS ALSO INVOLVED IN MORBIDITY MANAGEMENT AND DISABILITY PREVENTION RELATED SPECIFICALLY TO TRACHOMA AND LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS AND IS WORKING TO BUILD THE CAPACITY OF NATIONAL GOVERNMENT AND PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS IN THIS AREA IN FIVE AFRICAN COUNTRIES (MALI, NIGER, NIGERIA, SIERRA LEONE AND TANZANIA). IN 2025, WE SCREENED MORE THAN 1.6 MILLION INDIVIDUALS FOR TRACHOMA AND SUPPORTED SURGERY FOR OVER 2,400 PEOPLE AFFECTED BY A BLINDING CONDITION RESULTING FROM TRACHOMA (TRICHIASIS). THE COMBINATION OF THESE HELEN KELLER-SUPPORTED EFFORTS HAS LED TO THE GREAT SUCCESS OF MALI ELIMINATING TRACHOMA AS A PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM IN 2023 AND NIGER ELIMINATING ONCHOCERCIASIS IN 2025; OTHER COUNTRIES CONTINUE TO MAKE PROGRESS IN THIS DIRECTION WITH TRACHOMA, LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS AND ONCHOCERCIASIS

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

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since September 1963.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  6. 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.