Room to Read
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
ROOM TO READ ENVISIONS A WORLD FREE FROM ILLITERACY AND GENDER INEQUALITY, WHERE ALL CHILDREN HAVE ROOM TO READ, LEARN AND GROW.
- Income
- $66.5 million
- Spending
- $62.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 86%
- Reserves
- 6.8 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 94%
- Employees
- 86
- Volunteers
- 12,385
- Highest pay
- $392,192, ceo / director
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
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 88% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 6.8 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 13% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 9% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1586% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 9 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 50% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2522 of 23 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 (2)
- $42.9 million spent. ROOM TO READ'S LITERACY PROGRAM PORTFOLIO SUPPORTS CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING LITERACY SKILLS AND A LOVE OF READING BY TRAINING AND COACHING EDUCATORS, CREATING QUALITY CURRICULUM AND CHILDREN'S BOOK CONTENT IN LOCAL LANGUAGES, AND ENRICHING LEARNING SPACES THAT ENABLE CHILDREN TO BECOME INDEPENDENT READERS. TO DATE, ROOM TO READ HAS BENEFITED 47.96 MM CHILDREN THROUGH ITS LITERACY PORTFOLIO.
- $11.2 million spent. ROOM TO READ'S GENDER EQUALITY PROGRAM PORTFOLIO SUPPORTS ALL ADOLESCENTS, PARTICULARLY GIRLS, TO DEVELOP LIFE SKILLS THAT PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY WITH CURRICULUM THAT FOCUSES ON COLLABORATION, RESILIENCE, LEADERSHIP, DECISION-MAKING AND CRITICAL THINKING.TO DATE, ROOM TO READ HAS BENEFITED 4.03 MM CHILDREN THROUGH ITS GENDER EQUALITY PORTFOLIO. (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O) FOUNDED IN 2000 ON THE BELIEF THAT WORLD CHANGE STARTS WITH EDUCATED CHILDREN, ROOM TO READ (THE ORGANIZATION") DEVELOPS CHILDREN'S FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY SKILLS, AS WELL AS LIFE SKILLS THAT PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY. AS A LEADING IMPLEMENTER, ROOM TO READ NURTURES THESE ESSENTIAL SKILLS IN CHILDREN BY STRENGTHENING EDUCATION SYSTEMS ALL WHILE HONORING THE DIGNITY OF EVERY CHILD. ROOM TO READ'S LITERACY PORTFOLIO SUPPORTS CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING LITERACY SKILLS AND A LOVE OF READING BY TRAINING AND COACHING EDUCATORS, CREATING QUALITY CURRICULUM AND CHILDREN'S BOOK CONTENT IN LOCAL LANGUAGES, AND ENRICHING LEARNING SPACES THAT ENABLE CHILDREN TO BECOME INDEPENDENT READERS. ROOM TO READ'S GENDER EQUALITY PORTFOLIO SUPPORTS ALL ADOLESCENTS, PARTICULARLY GIRLS, TO DEVELOP LIFE SKILLS THAT PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY WITH CURRICULUM THAT FOCUSES ON COLLABORATION, RESILIENCE, LEADERSHIP, DECISION-MAKING AND CRITICAL THINKING. ROOM TO READ IS A VALUABLE PARTNER OF CHOICE FOR GOVERNMENT, OTHER SYSTEM AND PROGRAM PARTNERS AS WELL AS INVESTORS FOCUSED ON EDUCATION. COMMITTED TO ACCELERATING LEARNING OUTCOMES FOR MORE CHILDREN, MORE QUICKLY, ROOM TO READ HAS BENEFITED MORE THAN 50 MILLION CHILDREN ACROSS 28 COUNTRIES, INCLUDING BANGLADESH, CAMBODIA, CANADA, CHINA, GRENADA, HONDURAS, INDIA, INDONESIA, ITALY, JORDAN, KENYA, LAOS, LEBANON, MALAWI, MALDIVES, MYANMAR, NEPAL, PAKISTAN, PALESTINE, PHILIPPINES, RWANDA, SOUTH AFRICA, SRI LANKA, TANZANIA, UGANDA, THE UNITED STATES, VIETNAM AND ZAMBIA. BY THE END OF 2027, ROOM TO READ AIMS TO DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN AND COMMUNITIES IT SUPPORTS EACH YEAR. ROOM TO READ ALSO HAS WORLDWIDE OFFICES: COLOMBO, DAR ES SALAAM, DHAKA, DELHI, DUBAI, HO CHI MINH CITY, HONG KONG, KATHMANDU, LONDON, MUMBAI, NAIROBI, NEW YORK CITY, PHNOM PENH, PRETORIA, SAN FRANCISCO, SINGAPORE, SYDNEY, TOKYO, VIENTIANE, WASHINGTON D.C., ZURICH AND CONDUCTS FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES IN THE UNITED STATES ("US") AS WELL AS TEN COUNTRIES OUTSIDE OF THE US(AUSTRALIA, CANADA, HONG KONG, INDIA, JAPAN, THE NETHERLANDS, SINGAPORE, SWITZERLAND, UAE AND THE UNITED KINGDOM). ROOM TO READ ENVISIONS A WORLD FREE FROM ILLITERACY AND GENDER INEQUALITY, WHERE ALL CHILDREN HAVE ROOM TO READ, LEARN AND GROW. ROOM TO READ'S THEORY OF CHANGE REFLECTS ITS PATH TO WORLD CHANGE. SPECIFICALLY, THE ORGANIZATION: -LEVERAGES ITS PROGRAMMATIC CORE COMPETENCIES (CURRICULUM AND CONTENT, EDUCATOR TRAINING AND COACHING, DELIVERY STRUCTURES, AND RESEARCH AND INSIGHTS). -INFLUENCES AND STRENGTHENS LEARNING SYSTEMS (FORMAL AND NON-FORMAL EDUCATION SYSTEMS, MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS, AND EVIDENCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS) BOTH DIRECTLY AND IN COLLABORATION WITH PARTNERS; AND -EXECUTES THROUGH TWO OPERATING MODELS (DELIVER AND ACCELERATE). ROOM TO READ'S ENTRY POINTS TO SCALE OUTCOMES IN A SPECIFIC CONTEXT CONSIDER THE LEVERAGING COMBINATION OF CORE COMPETENCY(IES) AND PARTNER(S') NEEDS WITHIN SPECIFIC LEARNING SYSTEMS, AS WELL AS THE RELATIVE BENEFIT OF DELIVERING PROGRAMMING THROUGH EACH OPERATING MODEL. SEE BELOW FOR DEFINITIONS OF CORE COMPETENCIES, LEARNING SYSTEMS AND OPERATING MODELS. PROGRAMMATIC CORE COMPETENCIES : OUR PROGRAMMATIC CORE COMPETENCIES, OR AREAS OF EXPERTISE, ARE CONTINUOUSLY CULTIVATED AND GUIDED BY WHAT CHILDREN NEED TO DEVELOP LITERACY SKILLS, AND LIFE SKILLS THAT PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY. ROOM TO READ WORKS IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS, DEVELOPING AND DELIVERING QUALITY PROGRAMMING DIRECTLY, WHILE ALSO STRENGTHENING RELEVANT POLICIES AND PRACTICES WITH PARTNERS. CURRICULUM AND CONTENT: QUALITY, CONTEXTUALIZED LITERACY AND LIFE SKILLS CURRICULAR MATERIALS, SUPPLEMENTARY TEACHING AND LEARNING MATERIALS, AND CHILDREN'S LITERATURE IN A VARIETY OF LANGUAGES AND FORMATS. EDUCATOR TRAINING AND COACHING: TRAINING AND COACHING FOR EDUCATORS TO IMPROVE LITERACY AND LIFE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL CHILDREN, USING INCLUSIVE AND SENSITIVE TEACHING PRACTICES THAT ENCOURAGE CHILDREN'S DEVELOPMENT OF SELF-WORTH AND GENDER EQUALITY. DELIVERY STRUCTURES: SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE LEARNING SPACES FOR CHILDREN AS WELL AS THE TIME AND TECHNOLOGY TO USE THEM EFFECTIVELY. ROOM TO READ ALSO STRENGTHENS SUPPLY AND DEMAND CHAINS THAT ENRICH THESE SPACES. RESEARCH AND INSIGHTS: GENERATION AND UTILIZATION OF MEASUREMENT TOOLS, DATA AND EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORT PROGRAMMATIC IMPROVEMENTS AND INNOVATIONS AS WELL AS OVERALL IMPROVED LITERACY, LIFE SKILLS, DIGNIFIED LEARNING (I.E., SELF-WORTH) AND GENDER EQUALITY OUTCOMES. LEARNING SYSTEMS LEARNING SYSTEMS ARE THE SYSTEMS WITHIN THE LARGER LEARNING ECOSYSTEM THAT IMPACT CHILDREN'S DEVELOPMENT OF FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS. ROOM TO READ WORKS WITHIN AND ACROSS THE FOLLOWING LEARNING SYSTEMS: FORMAL EDUCATION SYSTEMS: GOVERNMENT AND NON-GOVERNMENT RUN SCHOOL SYSTEMS. NON-FORMAL EDUCATION SYSTEMS: SYSTEMS GOVERNING ORGANIZATIONS WORKING WITH CHILDREN IN THEMATIC AREAS SUCH AS ARTS, SPORTS, RELIGION, COMMUNITY LIBRARIES, JOB TRAINING AND HOME LEARNING. THIS CATEGORY ALSO INCLUDES SYSTEMS THAT SUPPORT DISPLACED POPULATIONS. MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS: SYSTEMS GOVERNING FOR-PROFIT, NONPROFIT AND GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING; AUDIO AND VIDEO CONTENT PRODUCERS, BROADCASTERS AND DISTRIBUTORS; AND EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS. EVIDENCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS: SYSTEMS CREATED TO COLLECT AND MANAGE EVIDENCE IN AND ACROSS UNIVERSITIES, THINK TANKS, ASSESSMENT COMPANIES, DIGITAL DATA COLLECTION AND VISUALIZATION PARTNERS, AND GOVERNMENT EDUCATION MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS (EMIS). OPERATING MODELS: ROOM TO READ HAS TWO PRIMARY OPERATING MODELS DELIVER AND ACCELERATE. THE MODELS DEFINE THE ROLE ROOM TO READPLAYS IN IMPLEMENTING ITS PROGRAMMING AND ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS: UNDER THE DE
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 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 December 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 December 1999.
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.
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