Iola Foundation
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
It Gets Better's mission is to uplift, empower, and connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) youth around the globe.
- Income
- $2.1 million
- Spending
- $2.5 million
- Spent on programs
- 72%
- Reserves
- 0 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 99%
- Employees
- 17
- Volunteers
- 11
- Highest pay
- $179,254, chief executive officer
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 44 out of 100. Higher than 7% of charities in its peer group (philanthropy, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
4 of 35Spendable reserves would cover -0.0 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 12% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 16% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 15% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1572% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 18 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 65% of charities in its peer group (philanthropy, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2510 of 10 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, 2024, 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 (3)
- $843,579 spent. Media:Storytelling is at the heart of our effort to empower LGBTQ+ youth around the globe. We share stories that inspire hope, stories that spark conversations, and stories that can inform and positively influence a sexual orientation and/or gender identity journey. Every It Gets Better story offers a unique, wisdom-infused perspective designed to show LGBTQ+ youth that through community, shared experiences, and life-affirming resources, things can and will get better. This simple message of hope has been translated across all forms of media, including social media, television specials, best-selling books, theater, museum exhibits and more. It has attracted millions of followers and supporters from around the world. It Gets Better is the destination for LGBTQ+ youth exploring their sexual orientation and/or gender identity.In 2024, It Gets Better shared uplifting content and messages that reached a global audience of more than 2.1 million people across TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, Facebook, Tumblr, Linked In, Bluesky and Reddit, and more than 320,000 unique visitors explored ItGetsBetter.org, our information-rich website, to engage with resources designed to inform LGBTQ+ youth on their sexual orientation and/or gender journey. Each year, we are engaging with nearly 850,000 young people through our media and website channels. It Gets Better published its first book in 13 years with the release of Queerbook in May. An anthology collection of essays, art, photography, poetry, and more created and edited by LGBTQ+ youth, It Gets Better worked in collaboration with Tumblr and asked LGBTQ+ young people throughout the country to answer the question - "What is your Queer Utopia?" The limited edition book sold out its first run. It Gets Better prioritized micro-content campaigns in 2024 with the release of successful initiatives like Trans Youth Deserve Better, a merch and content strategy spearheaded by our Youth Voices ambassadors aimed at showing solidarity with trans youth; #ElectionSzn, a collection of short form videos advising youth how they can get involved in the political process even if they aren't yet able to vote; and Joy Rebellion, an end of year fundraising and content strategy aimed at celebrating queer joy as an act of resistance. It Gets Better's Twitch Ambassador and affiliate programs continued with more than 80 Twitch streamers broadcasting more than 180 hours of content on Twitch and reaching more than 22,500 youth directly. This year's Digital Pride activation was a week-long relay featuring 20+ LGBTQ+ streamers broadcasting on their individual channels in support of It Gets Better while building a Pride Village in Minecraft. The big reveal on It Gets Better's Twitch channel was featured on the Twitch homepage and the activation reached more than 18,000 youth. Twitch streamers also reached sizable youth audiences with special events including a Dead by Daylight stream in collaboration with the American Red Cross and our annual Chosen Family holiday stream.
- $680,079 spent. Education:It Gets Better EDU exists to ensure our uplifting and informative stories reach LGBTQ+ youth and their peers wherever learning takes place. With an impactful youth ambassador program, student-driven grantmaking initiatives, and a growing library of free educational resources for educators and student leaders, thousands of middle and high school students engage with It Gets Better EDU programming every year.In 2024, It Gets Better EDU, with support from American Eagle and their generous customers and additional support from the MAC Viva Glam Foundation and Tumblr, returned with season three of 50 States. 50 Grants. 5,000 Voices, awarded nearly $250,000 in grants to 25 schools and community organizations throughout the United States. Grants supported a range of LGBTQ+ inclusive projects, from launching Genders & Sexualities Alliances and diversifying libraries to sexual health training videos for educators and Pride celebrations. Throughout the year, our 10 Youth Voices ambassadors proved themselves to be stellar spokespeople for the organization and their fellow LGBTQ+ youth, talking with the press about issues facing trans youth in schools, inclusive education, access to mental health, the importance of visibility during Pride Month, and more. In October, the Youth Voices traveled to Los Angeles for our third annual Youth Summit where they participated in a full day of leadership training at the It Gets Better offices, visited the Funko Store in Hollywood, participated in a photoshoot with acclaimed photographer Maxwell Poth, and more. Our collaboration with Hopelab and Centerlink in support of the digital mental health resource imi (available at https://imi.guide/) hit a major milestone in August by officially reaching 100,000 users. In December, It Gets Better took over full ownership of imi. Additionally, thousands of educational materials were accessed by educators throughout 2024 to reach more than 1,700 educators and more than 103,000 students participating in both on and offline learning environments.
- $256,644 spent. Global:It Gets Better is the world's largest storytelling effort to empower LGBTQ+ youth. Investing in local, like-minded organizations outside the US, It Gets Better brings storytelling and other life-affirming support to communities of LGBTQ+ youth around the globe.By the end of 2024, the It Gets Better Global Affiliate Network spanned 19 countries across four continents with global storytelling efforts happening in eight languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, German, Greek, French, and Hungarian. In September, It Gets Better hosted its first ever Global Summit live on Twitch, a collaboration with It Gets Better Mexico that was broadcast in English and in Spanish. The summit gathered representatives from our Global Affiliates in Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru with special appearances from our global grantees in Bolivia and Costa Rica. The summit also featured a presentation of our Spanish language EduGuide promoting inclusive language for nonbinary people. It Gets Better saw several projects that were funded through its Global Grants initiative come to completion. The Museo de la Identidad y Orgullo (MIO) in Costa Rica celebrated their efforts to preserve the history of the LGBTIQ+ movement through the digitization of over 150 queer magazines published between 1980 and 1995. As part of the project, MIO hosted engaging workshops in both urban and rural communities in Nosara, Monteverde, and San Jose. Additionally, the project was made accessible through social media, with over 100K views garnered on TikTok. The project's expansive reach was made possible through partnerships with organizations like Nosara Pride, Monteverde Diverso, and the University of Costa Rica.Colectivo Daria y Fraternidad did exceptional work with their grant funds to recover LGBTQ+ history from within indigenous communities of Bolivia. The organization worked tirelessly, through numerous educational and artistic events offered to communities across the country, to bring to light many of the ancestral LGBTQ+ beliefs and practices that have often been forgotten at large. Over 4,200 LGBTQ+ youth participants were impacted through the resources, mentorship and skill-building opportunities this project offered that fostered new avenues for self-expression and community engagement. Additionally, It Gets Better Espanol initiative was given a giant boost in 2024 thanks to a three-year commitment from Converse to support our capacity-building efforts to expand It Gets Better storytelling initiatives, educational programming, and global community-building efforts to positively impact Spanish-speaking LGBTQ+ youth audiences here in the US and abroad. It Gets Better Espanol launched its first ambassador program on Instagram, working with creators from around the world to bring our unique brand of uplifting content spanish-speaking LGBTQ+ youth. Additionally, we collaborated with Queer Chameleon on a pilot program advice series for Spanish-speaking LGBTQ+ youth on Instagram. Our Instagram channel saw its audience grow by 62% and logged more than 220,000 impressions in 2024.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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 July 2008.
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.
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.