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Non-profit

JK Irwin Foundation

Location:

SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Tax ID:

56-2678107
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)-PF

Budget (2013):

Revenue: $95,510
Expenses: $247,855
Assets: $1,417,202

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The JK Irwin Foundation is a private grantmaking foundation based in San Francisco focused primarily on criminal justice policy, including prison reform and drug abuse treatment reform. 1 John Irwin, a university professor and author who had previously served five years’ imprisonment for armed robbery, formed the Foundation. 2

As a private foundation, the JK Irwin Foundation (JKIF) generally does not solicit donations from the public, but rather is funded by investment income from an endowment worth $1,222,535 in 2016. The JKIF distributed $211,070 in charitable contributions in 2016. 3

History

The JK Irwin Foundation (JKIF) was established in 2010, the year that John Irwin passed away. 4 5 Irwin was a former prisoner who, after his release, dedicated much of his life to advocating prison reforms. Irwin obtained a PhD in sociology, taught at San Francisco State University, and wrote several books about the criminal justice system. He became an activist and served on the board of the Sentencing Project, a prison reform organization that became a beneficiary of the JK Irwin Foundation. 6

Irwin’s widow, Marsha Rosenbaum, and daughter, Anne Irwin, became president and vice president, respectively, of the JK Irwin Foundation. 7 8 Rosenbaum is director emerita of the San Francisco office of the Drug Policy Alliance, a group campaigning for the legalization and decriminalization of controlled substances. 9

Connection to the Tides Foundation

From its founding in 2010 through 2014, the JK Irwin Foundation was closely tied to the left-leaning Tides Foundation. 10  JKIF’s director11 was an employee of the Tides Foundation12 and Tides Foundation founder Drummond Pike serves on the JKIF board as treasurer. 1314

Pike remained treasurer of JKIF as of 2016, according to JFIK tax filings. 15

People

Marsha Rosenbaum is president of JKIF and widow of John Irwin. She is a longtime donor to Democratic political candidates and the Democratic Party. 16

Rosenbaum is an activist and donor for marijuana legalization17 and co-chaired the Blue Ribbon Commission on Marijuana Policy in California that advised California on marijuana issues in anticipation of legalization in 2016. 18

Rosenbaum has published three books and written opinion pieces19 about drug use.  Rosenbaum is director emerita of the San Francisco Office of the Drug Policy Alliance and founder of Safety First—an educational project for parents of teenagers. 20

Anne Irwin is vice-president of JKIF and daughter of John Irwin. 21 22 She is also founder and director of Smart Justice CA, which advocates for criminal justice reforms such as ending bail requirements for accused criminals. 23 Irwin is also a donor to Democratic candidates for public office. 24

Drummond Pike is treasurer of JKIF. He is a long-time leftist activist, supporter of left-leaning causes, founder of the left-of-center Tides Foundation, and very active donor to Democratic candidates and the Democratic Party. 25

Suzanne Gollin is secretary of JKIF. 26 She is a writer, activist, and donor to left-of-center causes and campaigns and a donor to Democratic candidates for public office. 27

Gary Schwartz is a director of JKIF. 28 He worked in various capacities at the Tides Foundation until 2014. Schwartz has worked on the boards of numerous left-leaning nonprofits, including the Texas Abortion Rights Action League, Children of War, and Artists for a New South Africa. He currently works for the NoVo Foundation, a left-wing grantmaking entity created by Peter Buffett, son of politically liberal investor Warren Buffett. 29

Activity

The JKIF was a supporting organization of the left-leaning Tides Foundation from 2010 through 2014. 30

The JKIF has provided substantial and consistent support to the Sentencing Project, which advocates for corrections reforms such as reducing punishments for those convicted of violent crimes, providing taxpayer-paid college educations to convicted criminals, expanding tax-funded health care to former convicted criminals, increasing taxpayer-provided legal assistance to prisoners, and reducing sentences for convicted criminals. 31 32 33 34

The JKIF provides support for conferences focused on helping former prisoners. 35

The JKIF has also supported Students for a Sensible Drug Policy, a nation-wide student group seeking to reduce criminalization of marijuana and other illegal drugs. 36

In addition to their focus on prison, corrections and drug reform causes, the JKIF also makes contributions to organizations with broad-based left-of-center missions such as the Proteus Fund and Dream Corps. 37

The JKIF has contributed to Kipp Bay Area Schools, a public charter school. 38

References

  1. ProPublica. Nonprofit Explorer. “JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/562678107
  2. Fagan, Kevin. “Criminal Turned Criminologist John Irwin Dies.” SFGate. San Francisco Chronicle, January 7, 2010. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Criminal-turned-criminologist-John-Irwin-dies-3205069.php.
  3. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  4. Nonprofitfacts.com. Tax-Exempt Organizations. “Jk Irwin Foundation in San Francisco, California (CA)”. Accessed November 3, 2019. http://www.nonprofitfacts.com/CA/Jk-Irwin-Foundation.html
  5. Fagen, Kevin. “Criminal turned criminologist John Irwin dies”. San Francisco Gate. January 7, 2010. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Criminal-turned-criminologist-John-Irwin-dies-3205069.php
  6. Fagen, Kevin. “Criminal turned criminologist John Irwin dies”. San Francisco Gate. January 7, 2010. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Criminal-turned-criminologist-John-Irwin-dies-3205069.php
  7. San Francisco State University. SF State Foundation. Board of Directors. “Marsha Rosenbaum”. Accessed November 3, 2019. http://dev-sfsu-fdn.pantheonsite.io/marsha_r
  8. LinkedIn. “Anne Irwin”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.linkedin.com/in/anneirwinsmartjusticeca
  9. Fagan, Kevin. “Criminal Turned Criminologist John Irwin Dies.” SFGate. San Francisco Chronicle, January 7, 2010. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Criminal-turned-criminologist-John-Irwin-dies-3205069.php.
  10. Great Nonprofits. Jk Irwin Foundation. “Nonprofit Overview”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://greatnonprofits.org/org/jk-irwin-foundation
  11. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  12. Center for Responsive Politics. OpenSecrets.org. Donor Lookup. “Gary Schwartz”. “Occupation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Gary+Schwartz
  13. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  14. Tides Foundation. Tides.org. About. “History”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.tides.org/about/history/
  15. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  16. Center for Responsive Politics. OpenSecrets.org. Donor Lookup. “Marsha Rosenbaum”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Marsha+Rosenbaum
  17. Coolican, Patrick. “Prop 19 Pot Legalization: The Money Chase”. Los Angeles Weekly. September 7, 2010. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.laweekly.com/prop-19-pot-legalization-the-money-chase/
  18. Blue Ribbon Commission on Marijuana Policy. Safeandsmartpolicy.org. About the Commission. “Marsha Rosenbaum (co-chair)”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.safeandsmartpolicy.org/commissioner/marsha-rosenbaum/
  19. Rosenbaum, Marsha. “Marsha Rosenbaum: No, random student drug testing backfires”. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. May 4, 2005. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/Op-Ed/2005/05/04/Marsha-Rosenbaum-No-random-student-drug-testing-backfires/stories/200505040247
  20. Bureau of Jewish Education. Jewish Teen Alliance. Parenting Your Teen. Workshops and Presenters. February 12, 2012. Page 6. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://jtasf.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/pyt-workshops-013112-2.pdf
  21. LinkedIn. “Anne Irwin – Founder and Director- Smart Justice CA”. Accessed November 3, 2019.  https://www.linkedin.com/in/anneirwinsmartjusticeca
  22. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Criminal-turned-criminologist-John-Irwin-dies-3205069.php
  23. Rivlin-Nadler, Max. “California Could Soon End Money Bail, But At What Cost?”. The Appeal. August 22, 2018. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://theappeal.org/california-could-soon-end-money-bail-but-at-what-cost/
  24. Center for Responsive Politics. OpenSecrets.org. Donor Lookup. “Anne Irwin”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Anne+Irwin
  25. Center for Responsive Politics. OpenSecrets.org. Donor Lookup. “Drummond Pike”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=drummond+pike
  26. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  27. Center for Responsive Politics. OpenSecrets.org. Donor Lookup. “Suzanne Gollin”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Suzanne+Gollin+
  28. CauseIQ. Directory. “2016 Form 990 for JK Irwin Foundation”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/view_990/562678107/f8d2f92493c795969786093fdd98d344
  29. NoVo Foundation. About Us. People. “Gary D. Schwartz”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://novofoundation.org/person/gary-schwartz/
  30. Tides Foundation. Tides.org. About. Annual Reports, Financials & Grantees. Financials. “Tides Organizations Consolidated 2015 Audited Financial Statement”. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.tides.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/TidesOrgs_2015_AuditedFS.pdf
  31. The Sentencing Project. Sentencingproject.org. Publications. “The Next Step; Ending Excessive Punishment for Violent Crimes”.Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/The-Next-Step.pdf
  32. Prison University Project. Prisonuniversityproject.org. “Celebrating 22 years of higher education in San Quentin at first annual Gather & Give”. September 25, 2018. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://prisonuniversityproject.org/news/celebrating-22-years-of-higher-education-in-san-quentin-at-first-annual-gather-give/
  33. Phillips, Susan D. “The Affordable Care Act: Implications for Public Safety and Corrections Populations”. The Sentencing Project. September 2012. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/e853/c04351a09d1987d109ecb9279b6dce2dc626.pdf
  34. Porter, Nicole D. “The State of Sentencing 2013: Developments in Policy and Practice”. The Sentencing Project. January 29, 2014. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/the-state-of-sentencing-2013-developments-in-policy-and-practice/
  35. Formerly Incarcerated & Convicted People & Families Movement First National Conference. Conference Program. Page 16. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://ficpmovement.files.wordpress.com/2016/08/ficpfm-program-final2.pdf
  36. Students for Sensible Drug Policy. Ssdp.org. About. Annual Reports and Financial Statements. “2013-2014 Annual Report”. Page 40. Accessed November 3, 2019. http://ssdp.org/assets/SSDP-Annual-Report-2014.pdfPage 40
  37. Dream Corps. Thedreamcorps.org/donors. Accessed November 3, 2019. https://www.thedreamcorps.org/donors
  38. KIPP Bay Area Schools. Kippbayarea.org. “2011-2012 Annual Report”. Page 19. Accessed November 3, 2019. http://www.kippbayarea.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Annual-Report-2011-2012.pdf

Directors, Employees & Supporters

  1. Drummond Pike
    Board Treasurer
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: January 1, 2010

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2013 Dec Form 990 $95,510 $247,855 $1,417,202 $3,500 N $0 $0 $47,712 $0 PDF
    2012 Dec Form 990 $587,410 $280,925 $1,569,547 $3,500 N $0 $0 $68,543 $0 PDF
    2011 Dec Form 990 $37,391 $340,560 $1,263,574 $4,012 N $200 $0 $38,293 $0 PDF
    2010 Dec Form 990 $58,047 $393,856 $1,562,730 $0 N $8,847 $0 $62,638 $0 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    JK Irwin Foundation

    2500 STEINER ST UNIT 8
    SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115-1187