International Literacy and Development
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
ILAD EXISTS TO PROVIDE THE SKILLS, TRAINING, CONCEPTS, AND ACCESS TO MATERIALS NEEDED TO AFFECT ONGOING CHANGE WITH AND WITHIN VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES.
- Income
- $3.1 million
- Spending
- $3.1 million
- Spent on programs
- 83%
- Reserves
- 2.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 92%
- Employees
- 47
- Volunteers
- 48
- Highest pay
- $85,000, president/exec 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
Fair: 67 out of 100. Higher than 34% of charities in its peer group (international, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 2.6 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 2% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 0% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 4% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1583% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 12 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 258 of 8 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)
- $2.2 million spent. IN 2025, INTERNATIONAL LITERACY AND DEVELOPMENT CONDUCTED ACTIVITIES IN 11 COUNTRIES. JORDAN, AZERBAIJAN, OMAN, TOGO, GUINEA, CHINA, INDIA, GEORGIA, THE UNITED STATES, EGYPT AND HONDURAS. WITHIN MANY OF THESE COUNTRIES, THERE ARE MULTIPLE PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS PROMOTING HUMAN FLOURISHING THROUGH EDUCATIONAL, ECONOMIC, AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT.IN THE MIDDLE EAST, ILAD STAFF IS FOCUSED ON LITERACY AND LIFE-SKILLS EDUCATION AMONG AN OVERLOOKED, UNDERSERVED MINORITY LANGUAGE GROUP. OVER 70 PEOPLE HAVE BENEFITED FROM THE WORK.MICRO ENTERPRISE: SIX WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS WERE INVOLVED IN CREATING AND RUNNING A JEWELRY/HANDICRAFTS MICRO-ENTERPRISE THAT PROVIDES STEADY, SUPPLEMENTAL INCOME FOR THEIR FAMILIES AND GIVES THEM A SENSE OF SELF-WORTH AND CONFIDENCE.LITERACY: USING THE ALPHABET CREATED AND TESTED IN 2021, THERE ARE CURRENTLY WOMEN'S LITERACY CLASSES AND STUDY GROUPS BEING HELD. THESE CLASSES AND GROUPS ARE LEARNING TO READ IN BOTH THE LOCAL LANGUAGE AND THE LANGUAGE OF WIDER USE. ADDITIONALLY, A COMMUNITY MEMBER HAS BEEN TRAINED TO BE A LITERACY FACILITATOR IN HER OWN COMMUNITY.
- $178,000 spent. ILAD'S LONGEST RUNNING PROGRAMS ARE IN WEST AFRICA, WHERE ILAD STAFF ARE INVOLVED IN LITERACY, AGRICULTURAL TRAINING, SOCIAL BUSINESS, MICRO-FINANCE, AND EDUCATION. ILAD CONDUCTED THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES:LITERACY: IN 2025, ILAD OPERATED 23 MOBILE LIBRARIES, SERVING OVER 2,000 MINORITY LANGUAGE SPEAKERS ACROSS TWO COUNTRIES. 6 OF THE VILLAGES WHERE LIBRARIES HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED HAVE BEGUN SERVICE CLUBS TO HELP THEIR COMMUNITY. THERE ARE ALSO 12 SCHOOLS WITH 20+ TEACHERS WHO SERVE APPROXIMATELY 1,250 CHILDREN AND ADULTS. IN ANOTHER WEST AFRICAN COUNTRY,150 WOMEN PARTICIPATED IN LITERACY CLASSES THAT TOOK PLACE IN 6 DIFFERENT VILLAGES. 3 NEW ASSISTANT TEACHERS WERE TRAINED.AGRICULTURAL TRAINING: OVER 1,500 LOCAL FARMERS HAVE ADOPTED THE INNOVATIVE ORGANIC PINEAPPLE PRODUCTION METHODS BEING TAUGHT ON ILAD'S SELF-SUSTAINING DEMONSTRATION FARM. OVER 700 VILLAGE-BASED, SMALL-FARM CO-OPS ARE TRAINED AND IN OPERATION. THE AGRICULTURE PROJECT INCLUDES TEACHING POND CULTURE TILAPIA RAISING, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, AND CROP DIVERSIFICATION. IN 2025, A POULTRY OPERATION WAS ADDED THAT PROVIDES JOBS AND FUNDING FOR MORE SUSTAINABLE PROJECTS. ADDITIONALLY, IN 2025, ILAD TOGO HOSTED A GROUP OF GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS FROM ANOTHER WEST AFRICAN NATION THAT ARE INTERESTED IN PARTNERING WITH ILAD TO INITIATE THESE PROGRAMS IN THEIR COUNTRY.BUSINESS EDUCATION: IN 2025, 41 LOCAL ENTREPRENEURS WERE TRAINED IN A BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER (BDC) DESIGNED TO EQUIP THEM WITH KNOWLEDGE AND TOOLS TO RUN ETHICAL, PROFITABLE, RELEVANT BUSINESSES IN THEIR COMMUNITIES THAT PROVIDE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL BENEFITS. DURING THE PHASES OF TRAINING, SEVERAL OF THE LOCAL ENTREPRENEURS WERE TRAINED TO BE ABLE TO LEAD SOME OF THESE CLASSES THEMSELVES.EDUCATION: IN 2025, ILAD CONTINUED TO PARTNER WITH A LOCAL VILLAGE TO PROVIDE JR./SR. SCHOOL WHERE FORMERLY THERE WAS ONLY AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. THESE SCHOOLS SERVED 134 STUDENTS. THE MIDDLE SCHOOL HAD A PASSING RATE OF 83% AND THE HIGH SCHOOL HAD A PASSING RATE OF 92%. 13 TEACHERS ARE EMPLOYED BY THE SCHOOL.
- $122,613 spent. HUMAN LANGUAGE TECHNOLOGY GLOBAL: ILAD CONTINUED ADVANCING THE FIELD OF HUMAN LANGUAGE TECHNOLOGY THROUGH DATA COLLECTION, APP DEVELOPMENT, AND THE CREATION OF TRANSLATION DEVELOPMENT TOOLS, WITH THE GOAL OF PROVIDING ACCESS TO INFORMATION TO LOW-RESOURCE LANGUAGE COMMUNITIES THROUGH MACHINE TRANSLATION. IN 2025, ILAD CONSISTENTLY WORKED ON A VARIETY OF PROJECTS FOR MULTIPLE LANGUAGE COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. EXAMPLES INCLUDE:PHOENIX - A LANGUAGE AGNOSTIC INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AI SOLUTIONS IS BEING PILOTED AMONG AMONG A MINORITY LANGUAGE COMMUNITY IN NORTH AFRICAGATEHOUSE - A SIMPLE WINDOWS PROGRAM FOR BULK DOCUMENT TRANSLATIONALFALFA - A SIMPLE APP FOR ROHINGYA ADULTS LEARNING ENGLISH BASICSGO HIGH LEVEL - A CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT PLATFORM FOR ILAD'S BDC'SASTER SPEECH-TO-TEXT AND TEXT-TO-SPEECH SYSTEMS FOR ROHINGYAWOOLAROOFOR RUTUL - A PICTURE DICTIONARY APP FOR THE RUTUL IN CENTRAL ASIALAUREL -A PROTOTYPE TO DEMONSTRATE WHAT AN END USER APP COULD LOOK LIKE ONCE THE UNDERLYING TECHNOLOGIES HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED
- $93,693 spent. DALLAS, TEXAS, IS HOME TO A LARGE REFUGEE POPULATION, MANY OF WHOM SPEAK MINORITY LANGUAGES WITH NO ACCESS TO WRITTEN OR AUDIO TEXTS IN THEIR PRIMARY LANGUAGE. ILAD WORKS WITH THE ROHINGYA REFUGEE COMMUNITY IN THE AREAS OF ESL, LITERACY, CITIZENSHIP, AND HEALTH EDUCATION. ILAD IS ALSO INVOLVED IN PRESERVING AND PROMOTING THE ROHINGYA LANGUAGE AND IS CURRENTLY COLLECTING LANGUAGE DATA TO BE USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF A ROHINGYA DICTIONARY AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF APPS FOR SMARTPHONES AND COMPUTERS.ESL AND CITIZENSHIP: 40 ROHINGYA REFUGEE FAMILIES PARTICIPATED IN ESL CLASSES. ADDITIONALLY, ELIGIBLE ROHINGYA WERE PREPARED FOR THEIR CITIZENSHIP TEST AND INTERVIEWS. 2 ROHINGYA TEACHERS TAUGHT THEIR OWN COMMUNITY MEMBERS.YOUTH ENGAGEMENT: ILAD STAFF CONDUCTED A YOUTH CIVIC ENGAGEMENT SIX-WEEK PROGRAM IN FALL WITH 15 ROHINGYA TEENS WHO LEARNED BASIC ROHINGYA TO HELP THEIR PARENTS WITH IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS, PARTICIPATED IN A LOCAL SERVICE EVENT. THIS PROGRAM BUILT THE FOUNDATION FOR STABLE GENERATIONAL UNDERSTANDING AND STRONGER FAMILIES.LITERACY AND EDUCATION: ILAD CREATED A YOUTUBE CHANNEL THAT HOSTS VIDEOS COVERING A VARIETY OF IMPORTANT TOPICS AS WELL AS ENGLISH LEARNING TOOLS, ALL IN THE ROHINGYA LANGUAGE. THERE ARE OVER 5000 SUBSCRIBERS.BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT: THE ILAD DFW BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER (BDC) INCREASES THE DIGNITY AND WELL-BEING OF REFUGEES WHO WANT TO START BUSINESSES THROUGH A PACKAGE OF CAPACITY-BUILDING GUIDANCE SERVICES DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR REFUGEES. PARTICIPANTS ACHIEVE FINANCIAL CONFIDENCE AND CREDIT-WORTHINESS, GET FUNDED, AND LAUNCH A BUSINESS WHICH PRODUCES REGULAR INCOME FOR THEIR HOUSEHOLD. IN 2025,75 ARABIC SPEAKING REFUGEE CLIENTS PARTICIPATED IN CREDIT BUILDING EDUCATIONAL TO BOOST THEIR SCORES AND FOSTER BETTER FINANCIAL HABITS.
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 August 2013.
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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