JK Irwin Foundation
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
Contents
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. 5
Irwin’s widow, Marsha Rosenbaum, and daughter, Anne Irwin, became president and vice president, respectively, of the JK Irwin Foundation. 6 7 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. 2
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. 8 JKIF’s director3 was an employee of the Tides Foundation9 and Tides Foundation founder Drummond Pike serves on the JKIF board as treasurer. 310
Pike remained treasurer of JKIF as of 2016, according to JFIK tax filings. 3
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. 11
Rosenbaum is an activist and donor for marijuana legalization12 and co-chaired the Blue Ribbon Commission on Marijuana Policy in California that advised California on marijuana issues in anticipation of legalization in 2016. 13
Rosenbaum has published three books and written opinion pieces14 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. 15
Anne Irwin is vice-president of JKIF and daughter of John Irwin. 16 17 She is also founder and director of Smart Justice CA, which advocates for criminal justice reforms such as ending bail requirements for accused criminals. 18 Irwin is also a donor to Democratic candidates for public office. 19
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. 20
Suzanne Gollin is secretary of JKIF. 3 She is a writer, activist, and donor to left-of-center causes and campaigns and a donor to Democratic candidates for public office. 21
Gary Schwartz is a director of JKIF. 3 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. 22
Activity
The JKIF was a supporting organization of the left-leaning Tides Foundation from 2010 through 2014. 23
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. 24 25 26 27
The JKIF provides support for conferences focused on helping former prisoners. 28
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. 29
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. 30
The JKIF has contributed to Kipp Bay Area Schools, a public charter school. 31
Financial Statistics
Total Assets
Total Revenue
Total Expenses
Expenses Detail
Grant Activity
All-time grants received statistics from Candid dataset:
- Total Grant Value: $20,000
- Number of Grants: 1
- Number of Funders: 1
Selection of highest value grants received from the last seven years:
| Amount | Year | Funder | Subject |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20,000 | 2023 | TIDES FOUNDATION | EQUITY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT |
All-time grants given statistics from Candid dataset:
- Total Grant Value: $1,002,931
- Number of Grants: 99
- Number of Recipients: 40
Selection of highest value grants given from the last seven years: