First Book

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521779606
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
1-866-READ-NOW
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Remedial Reading, Reading Encouragement

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$77,064,962
Expenses
$75,011,326
Assets
$33,492,739
Liabilities
$4,449,018

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KYLE ZIMMER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • DANA BOND (EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, STRATEGIC ALLIANCES)

Highest reported compensation

  • KYLE ZIMMER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $258,540 total reported compensation
  • ETIENNE VEBER (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $256,924 total reported compensation
  • DANIEL STOKES (CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER): $255,392 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We envision a world where every child has access to a quality education. Because education transforms lives. We level the educational playing field for children in need. We’re on a mission to ensure that all children, regardless of their background or zip code, can succeed and reach their full potential.

What it reported doing in 2025

First book is building a world where every child has access to a quality education. We work to remove barriers to education and level the playing field for kids in need. At the heart of our work are the 600,000+ members of the first book network, the largest online community of individual educators, professionals and volunteers dedicated to supporting children living in low-income communities across north america. This network is the key to creating lasting change. Through our research arm, first book research & insights, we conduct studies that aggregate their voices to identify challenges, needs, and solutions. To address their needs, we provide free and low-cost books, resources and access to leading experts through the first book marketplace, which uses aggregated buying power to support their work.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 82% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 63
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 40
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 91%; rating input score 91
  • Program expense ratio: 93.5%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: $36.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Pass
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 50%; rating input score 50; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.7%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.45; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.7%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.2% per year; rating input score 100; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1.7% per year; rating input score 100; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 91% of revenue deployed · 93.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $70.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $259K · 21 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $5.7M reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 10 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 50/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 46/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 49/100.