About Us - Frequent Questions - Donations

Do you accept used book donations?

We appreciate your interest in donating used books to Room to Read. One of the main reasons our organization has been able to impact so many children's lives is because of the generous involvement and support from people like you. Unfortunately, we DO NOT accept used book donations. After reviewing our individual book donation program, we have found that it actually costs Room to Read more time and money to sort and ship the donated books, than shipping new books donated directly by children's book publishers or by buying new books within our partner countries.

Instead, Room to Read has formed a very successful relationship with an organization called Better World Books, which collects and resells used books to benefit our programs. They are well equipped to handle the logistics and make it incredibly easy for donors to send the books to them by paying for shipping! For more information, please visit their website at www.betterworldbooks.com and mention that Room to Read sent you. You can also contact them directly by emailing info@betterworldbooks.com.

Can I donate new books?

Room to Read accepts new children's books in partnership with The Asia Foundation. (Please note that The Asia Foundation WILL NOT accept any used book donations). We ask that you consider donating new books only if there is a minimum of 50 books, as the logistical cost of accepting smaller shipments greatly reduces the cost efficiency of the program.

The following are some general guidelines for collecting NEW children's books for our program.

Books that are needed in the developing world and will be accepted by Room to Read:

  • Simple children's storybooks (think Clifford the Big Red Dog or Hop on Pop).
  • ABC and 123 books, or anything suitable to teaching young kids the English language.
  • Picture books for young children who can't yet read.
  • Hardcover books that are thick and durable.
  • Educational books that are fun – science, geography, math, world history, etc.
  • Easy beginner's novels for older kids, but please remember English is their second language.

Certain materials and subjects are NOT accepted by Room to Read, including:

  • Culturally sensitive material – examples would include materialism, books about sports cars, single parent families, and other things that are issues in the US, but not in Nepal, Cambodia or Vietnam).
  • Religious books (we are non-denominational, and do not promote any religion).
  • Books not appropriate for young children.
  • All books printed in any language other than English.
  • Fiction such as "dime-store" novels, mysteries, romance.
  • Journals and magazines.
  • Textbooks
  • Supplementary materials such as: Lab Manuals, Study Guides, Teacher's Editions, and Workbooks.

If you would like to make a new book donation and your books meet the above requirements, please contact gifts.in.kind@roomtoread.org and we will provide the appropriate next steps and notify The Asia Foundation of an expected shipment.

What does it mean to "Adopt a Project" and how can I go about doing so?

Room to Read is committed to transparency and treating our donors as investors in our organization. As a result, we have developed an "Adopt a Project" menu whereby donors either finance or raise funds for a particular project. Our projects include building new schools, establishing libraries, publishing local language children's books and funding education for girls. There are a variety of projects to choose from. Please visit the Adopt a Project page for more information.

I just tried donating online and it didn't work. What is wrong?

Room to Read employs a 3rd party vendor to process our credit card donations. Because of this, certain fields must be populated in order for the transaction to be processed. If you are experiencing any problems while attempting to make a donation to Room to Read, please refer to the following tips below:

  • Make sure that the address and zip code that you have entered are typed in exactly as they appear on your credit card billing statement.
  • Every transaction must contain something in the Zip Code field, even international donations. If you truly have no postal code, simply enter "00000" in this field.
  • Sometimes large international donations are declined by a donor's credit card company. Speaking with your credit card company prior to making a large donation from outside the U.S. should resolve this problem.

If you are still having problems making a donation, please email finance@roomtoread.org with your phone number and the best time to reach you so that we may help you troubleshoot the problem via the phone.

We thank you for your patience with any troubles encountered while making a donation to Room to Read and greatly appreciate your support!

How do we know that our funds are going to the intended projects?

Room to Read values transparency in all aspect of our operations. As a result, we provide many reports on the projects that our donors sponsor. For instance:

  • Every individual who sponsors a library receives a bi-annual report on our Reading Room program detailing the progress we are making as we scale from 5,000 libraries to 11,000 by the year 2010.
  • For school and library construction projects, donors receive an Application Report, which describes the community in need, reasons for support, and details of the challenge grant. Donors also receive a Completion Report with photos of the completed project and the plaque dedicated to the donor.
  • Sponsors of our local language publishing will have their name printed on the inside cover of one of our books as part of a group dedication. They will receive copies of the book once published.
  • Long-term funders of our Girls' Education program receive an annual Girls' Education Yearbook describing the components of the program and highlighting some of the amazing participants.

For more information on how to adopt a project, please see the question above or visit our Adopt a Project page.

Can I sponsor a particular girl as part of your Girls' Education program? Can I get letters from her?

It is Room to Read's philosophy not to establish a direct one-to-one relationship between our donors and individual students. We feel that forcing our students to maintain a relationship with a person they have never met is unfair, particularly due to the fact that a number of our students are quite young and not yet literate in English.

Of equal importance is that we want the children to feel that they are being helped by their own local people, in this case the local Room to Read teams. Having them communicate with a person overseas may have the effect of convincing them that the solution to their problems lies outside their own community, and will therefore foster a culture of dependence.

Instead, we ask donors to contribute to a general fund that is administered at a local level by our in-country staff. In order to allow our donors to learn more about the girls who participate in the program, we publish an annual Girls' Education Yearbook. This yearbook includes general information on the program, photos and letters from the girls, and program results.

For more information on the program or to download our latest yearbook, see our Girls' Education page.

Can I donate stock?

We are happy to accept gifts of stock. The IRS provides one of its most significant tax breaks for donations of appreciated securities. To make a stock gift to Room to Read, please follow this two-step process:

  1. Download our Stock Donation Form (Adobe PDF, 88kB), complete the form, and fax it back to Room to Read at +1 415-591-0580. This will ensure that we have the necessary information to properly acknowledge and credit your gift.
  2. Notify Room to Read of the transfer by contacting Stephanie Scott, Development Manager at +1 415-561-3331 or donate@roomtoread.org.

How can I donate to Room to Read? Do you have a preferred method of donating?

We accept donations in a variety of forms depending on which country you are donating from, but we prefer checks for larger donations as they incur no processing fees. All other forms of donations incur processing fees from third parties.

For detailed instructions on how to donate from your country, please visit our Make a Donation page.

Can I donate from a foreign country or in a foreign currency?

Yes! You can donate both from a foreign country and in a foreign currency.

To make a donation to Room to Read from Belgium, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom and receive a tax receipt for these countries, please follow the appropriate link on our Donate page.

If you don't live in one of the above countries, there are a few different ways you can make a donation. The most cost effective way to donate is via check, and Room to Read can process both donations received in US dollars and foreign currency. Please note that donations received through our global office will be receipted with US tax receipts.

If you wish to donate via credit card, you can donate in US dollars online via Room to Read's Credit Card donation page. Please be advised that large donations from foreign countries are sometimes declined by the cardholder's credit card issuing bank. In these cases, it may be necessary for you to speak with your credit card issuing bank to advise them that you would like to authorize Room to Read to charge your card. Lastly, Room to Read can accept wire transfers from foreign locations. Please contact finance@roomtoread.org to obtain further directions!