The Friends of the Oakland Public Library logo

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library

Public charity · Grantmaker Oakland, CA EIN: 94-2553734 Website
Children and youthAdultsEducationInformation and communicationsLibraries

To advance the role of the oakland public library as a vital community resource and as an institution critical to the culture, education and welfare of our diverse community.

Key facts about The Friends of the Oakland Public Library

In short: The Friends of the Oakland Public Library gave $433K across 1 grant in 2025 (avg $433K), mostly in California. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.

EIN
94-2553734
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$432,877
Grants made (2025)
1
Average grant
$432,877
Median grant
$432,877
Total assets
$1,601,069
Primary geography
California (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990 · View filing

Total Assets

$1.6M

+10.8% YoY

Annual Giving

$433K

+66.3% YoY

Grant Count

1

+0.0% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$433K

+66.3% YoY

How The Friends of the Oakland Public Library gives

  • Giving grew 43% from 2022 to 2025. Method

From the foundation's IRS Form 990 filings. Methodology.

About The Friends of the Oakland Public Library

Based on IRS filings

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library is a public charity focused on Children and youth, based in Oakland, CA. IRS filing data is available from 2019 through 2025. As of 2025, the organization holds $1.6M in total assets. In 2025, it awarded 1 grant totaling $433K. Net investment income was $18K.

Focus Areas

Children and youthAdultsEducationInformation and communicationsLibraries

Open Grants

4 open opportunities from The Friends of the Oakland Public Library

Show all 4 →
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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

Grant Distribution by State

1state

Share of the 2025 grant dollars on its one itemized grant.

States

Cities

Oakland

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$200K$400K$600K1 grant2019 1 grant2020 1 grant2021 1 grant2022 1 grant2023 1 grant2024 1 grant2025

From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $29K (2020) to $487K (2023). In 2025 it made 1 grant totaling $433K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top recipient in 2025

Oakland Public Library: $433KOakland Public Library$433K

The largest 2025 recipient was Oakland Public Library ($433K).

Grant Size Distribution

5 grants across all recorded years

<$50K$50–100K1$100–250K4$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was in the $250–500K range: 4 grants of 5 (80%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Oakland Public Library Oakland, CALiteracy Support$432,877

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Revenue
Expenses
Net Investment Income
$0$200K$400K$600K$800K2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$1,601,069$1,445,274$1,386,184
Revenue$684,982$526,647$533,528
Expenses$710,708$438,130$603,724
Net Investment Income$18,003$15,378$14,435

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS February 12, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS February 11, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS February 14, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 19, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 14, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS February 13, 2020)
  7. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 27, 2026)
  8. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Leadership & Key People

Officers and directors from IRS filings

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library is led by Kathryn Sterbenc, President on every filing since 2019; none of the 15 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Kathryn Sterbenc

    President

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Pooneh Koohyar

    Director

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Rebecca Pfiffner

    Director

    Vice President → Director, 2020

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Corey Hatcher

    Director

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Colleen Haikes

    Director

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Aniya Grimm

    Director

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Mifta Chowdhury

    Director

    Ass't Treasurer → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Diana Kaw

    Director

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Glenn Poppe

    Director

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Alexis Joseph-Merritt

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Erica Demmings

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Noah Cohen

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Ynez Arce

    Vice President

    Director → Vice President, 2020

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Elizabeth Falkner

    Secretary

    Director → Secretary, 2025

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Sara Jewell

    Treasurer

    Assistant Treasurer → Treasurer, 2022

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (19)
  • Former: Julie Waldman (2019–2024) — Director to
  • Former: Ronile Lahti (2019–2024) — Director
  • Former: Stephen Cole (2019–2024) — Director to
  • Former: Charu Mehra (2021–2024) — Director to
  • Former: Erica Dennings (2021–2024) — Director
  • Former: Anastasia Yip (2022–2024) — Secretary to
  • Former: Jennifer Chan (2022–2024) — Director to
  • Former: Alexis Joseph Merritt (2024) — Director Ao
  • Former: Cora Tellez (2024) — Director
  • Former: Michael J Dalton (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Valerie Villanueva (2019–2021) — Secretary
  • Former: Winifred Walters (2019–2021) — Co-Treasurer
  • Former: MC Abbott (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Sanam Nassirpour (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Nick Marble (2021) — Director
  • Former: Ashley Robinson (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Genevieve Katz (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Sheila McCormick (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Ellen Moyer (2019) — Director

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Frequently asked questions about The Friends of the Oakland Public Library

How much does The Friends of the Oakland Public Library give each year?

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library gave $433K across 1 grant in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $260K across 1 grant.

How large is The Friends of the Oakland Public Library?

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library reported $1.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $685K.

What is The Friends of the Oakland Public Library?

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library is a public charity focused on Children and youth, based in Oakland, CA. It holds $1.6M in total assets as of 2025.

Where does The Friends of the Oakland Public Library operate?

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library has awarded grants in California.

What is The Friends of the Oakland Public Library's EIN?

The Friends of the Oakland Public Library's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 94-2553734. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings.

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