ROOM TO READ
Organization Details
Mission Statement
ROOM TO READ ENVISIONS A WORLD FREE FROM ILLITERACY AND GENDER INEQUALITY, WHERE ALL CHILDREN HAVE ROOM TO READ, LEARN AND GROW.
Financial Information (2024)
Recent Progress (2026)
From March through June 2026, Room to Read delivered a period defined by landmark scale, major institutional investment, and deepening program reach. The release of the 2025 Annual Report anchored the period, confirming that 17.1 million children built foundational learning skills in a single year and that cumulative reach since founding has surpassed 60.3 million children across 29 geographies. Fundraising momentum was strong: the Swarovski Foundation matched donations toward a US$150,000 International Women's Day campaign, the New York Gala ("THE ROOM") generated investments benefiting 69,300+ children, and the Skoll Foundation committed $1.75M to expand Africa programming. New initiatives β including the AI-enabled STEP-AI teacher coaching program in Sub-Saharan Africa and expansion into three additional Bangladesh schools β signal a period of deliberate scaling alongside sustained program delivery.
Key Achievements
- πRoom to Read's annual report revealed 60.3 million children are building foundational learning skills across 29 geographies worldwide.
- π5,166 original and adapted children's literature titles have been published cumulatively in 61 languages, with 45.7 million books distributed.
- πThe IMC Trading for Charity event on June 16 spanned Sydney, Mumbai, Amsterdam, and Chicago, raising funds that have benefited 7.8 million children since the partnership began.
- π«The IMC Trading for Charity partnership has supported 22,000+ schools and trained 33,000+ educators across Africa and India since 2016.
- π°USD 235,379 raised to date through the MDRT Foundation charity partnership to support Room to Read's education programs.