Grant Awards for Fiscal Year Ending December 31, 2005
Priority Grant Areas
Community Development
During 2005, the Foundation authorized twenty community development grants totaling $1,235,000.Direct Program Expenses: $110,000
This funding supported consulting assistance to organizations in the Foundation's priority neighborhoods and citywide efforts to create stronger communities.Neighborhoods
Belair Edison Neighborhoods, Inc. $75,000
Belair Edison Neighborhoods, Inc., has for the past six years been a leader in using the "Healthy Neighborhoods" strategy for neighborhood revitalization. This transitional neighborhood in Northeast Baltimore continues to build on its many advantages: sturdy and affordable rowhomes, nearby park space, and active resident leadership to increase new homeowner investment. Belair Edison also is working with such partners as the Community Law Center and the St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center to reduce home foreclosures. This grant supports core staff.Charles Street Development Corporation $5,000
The Charles Street Development Corporation was created in 2000 to increase commercial and retail investment along Baltimore's "Main Street" and to work cooperatively with other organizations to strengthen the residential, cultural, and economic aspects of the area. Extensive streetscape investment, increased leasing activity, and major private investment in historic facade improvements have resulted. Currently in the works are an additional $8 million in streetscaping and advocacy for a transit circulation system from Pratt Street to University Parkway. This grant provides core operating support.Charles Village Community Benefits District $35,000
Founded in 1994, the Charles Village Community Benefits District uses the Healthy Neighborhoods approach to revitalization to serve a diverse set of neighborhoods just north of the city's central business district and Penn Station. In the past several years, the organization encouraged the rehabilitation of fifty-four formerly vacant properties. In addition, investments along the Waverly Main Street and 25th Street commercial corridor have exceeded $3 million. This grant provides continued support for revitalization program staff.Community Law Center $50,000
The Community Law Center is a leader in combating the unethical and illegal real estate and lending practices that deplete homeowner equity and can lead to mortgage foreclosure. From 2000 to 2004, the Law Center staffed the Baltimore City Flipping & Predatory Lending Task Force, which oversaw a substantial decline in the incidence of property flipping. However, irresponsible lending practices continue to deepen the housing burden for lower income homeowners. This grant supports the Law Center's partnership with Belair Edison Neighborhoods, Inc., to analyze neighborhood foreclosure and lending patterns and to provide education to residents.Comprehensive Housing Assistance, Inc. $50,000
The Foundation has been a consistent supporter of Comprehensive Housing Assistance, Inc., since the late 1970s. CHAI has worked in a diverse set of Northwest Baltimore neighborhoods to produce more than 500 units of affordable senior housing and to assist more than 1,000 families with homeownership or property renovation. In recent years, CHAI has focused on home improvements in areas with growing Hispanic populations; forged stronger community and public school connections; and provided leadership in developing community plans, including working across jurisdictional lines in Randallstown and Pikesville. This grant provides continued support for community development staff.Creative Alliance $20,000
The programs of the Creative Alliance draw thousands of people to the historic Patterson Theater and to outdoor festivals. Its work complements that of other local community development organizations: Patterson Park CDC, Southeast CDC, and Friends of Patterson ParkÑ which, like the Alliance, are spurring significant interest and reinvestment in the diverse neighborhoods of Southeast Baltimore. This grant provides support for three community programs: the Great Lantern Parade, Family Fun Day, and the New Neighbors program, which will engage recent immigrants in cultural and arts activities.East Baltimore Development, Inc. $100,000
Since its founding in 2001, the Foundation has supported EBDI in the ambitious and complex work of creating a vibrant, mixed-use, mixed-income community north of the Johns Hopkins medical campus in East Baltimore. Over the past year, significant progress has been made in implementing the $850 million first phase of major redevelopment. This grant provides core operating support.Friends of Patterson Park $20,000
Friends of Patterson Park has grown from a small group of community volunteers to a modestly staffed organization that supports the interest and enthusiasm of more than 750 members. It has been the organizing force behind refurbishment of the landmark Patterson Park Pagoda, the Marble Fountain, the Boat Lake, and other capital and beautification projects. Friends partners with the National Audubon Society to offer many environmental and wildlife events and to manage volunteer park stewardship activities. This grant provides general support.Friends of Wyman Park Dell $25,000
The Friends of Wyman Park Dell was formed in 1983 to promote greater appreciation and use of the historic Dell, a 16-acre park in the nexus of Charles Village, Remington, and the Johns Hopkins University Homewood campus. The Park, developed in accordance with the 1904 Olmsted master plan, is now in need of significant capital and site improvements. This grant is for a professional master plan for the Dell.Greater Homewood Community Corporation $125,000
The Greater Homewood Community Corporation assists a diverse set of forty neighborhoods in North-Central Baltimore. In particular, the Corporation manages an effective Healthy Neighborhoods program in Ednor Gardens, an active calendar of Healthy Block projects, and community organizing activities in Remington. This grant is for continued support of general operations and community development staff.Jubilee Baltimore, Inc. $50,000
For more than two decades, Jubilee has been one of Baltimore's most consistent developers of affordable housing. In the past several years, Jubilee has become a mixed-income development organization, bringing market-rate investment to Baltimore's historic yet undervalued neighborhoods, with a special focus on Midtown and Reservoir Hill. Jubilee specializes in helping homeowners with complicated historic renovation projects. To date, it has helped residents reclaim ninety formerly neglected properties with a combined value of $40 million. This grant provides general support for operations and staff.Mount Vernon Cultural District $40,000
Since its creation in 1996, the Mt. Vernon Cultural District has coordinated the efforts of twelve cultural, educational, and religious institutions; three foundations; and several leading corporations and agencies. Its institutional members have made the District a popular destination for more than 1.5 million visitors each year. Members have collectively invested $327 million in capital in the past ten years and plan to invest another $167 million over the next five. This grant provides general support.Reservoir Hill Improvement Council $50,000
Historic Reservoir Hill in West Baltimore has seen a sharp increase in market-rate homeownership investment in just the past few years. Historic rowhomes that stood vacant or neglected for years are now highly sought after, and home values are rising. The nonprofit Reservoir Hill Improvement Council is working on the challenging task of both encouraging new market-rate investment and increasing housing opportunities for longtime residents of modest income. This grant supports core staff.Southeast Community Development Corporation $75,000
The Southeast Community Development Corporation is managing three of the city's major revitalization programs: Healthy Neighborhoods, Main Streets, and the Arts & Entertainment District. Southeast CDC is working in the diverse communities of Highlandtown, Bayview, and Baltimore-Highlands to increase residential investment and to promote new retail investment along the Eastern Avenue retail corridor. This grant supports staff working on neighborhood and commercial development.Station North Arts and Entertainment District, Inc. $35,000
Station North was established in 2002 as one of four arts and entertainment districts designated by the State of Maryland for special tax incentives. Its 100-acre area on North Avenue and Charles Street near Penn Station provides workspace for nearly 400 artists. Station North is also a focus of the Baltimore Neighborhood Collaborative's transit-centered community development initiative. This grant provides support for hiring the District's first staff member, an executive director.
Citywide Community Development
Baltimore Neighborhood Collaborative $125,000
Since its founding in 1995, the Baltimore Neighborhood Collaborative has built a stable membership of foundations, individuals, lenders, and other corporations that annually contribute to a pooled fund for community development. BNC has raised $5.5 million and provided multiyear operating support for twelve neighborhood-based organizations serving fifty neighborhoods. This grant supports BNC's transit and neighborhood initiatives.Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance $35,000
The Alliance was founded as a neighborhood and institutional resource in 1999. BNIA's small staff developed the central source of community indicators called Vital Signs, which tracks progress in housing and community development, children and family health, community safety and well-being, workforce and economic development, city services, urban environment and transit, and education and youth issues. The Alliance is in a period of transition to identify a long-term institutional home. This grant provides support for neighborhood analysis and strategic planning.Healthy Neighborhoods, Inc. $200,000
Healthy Neighborhoods began in 2000 as a pilot program in six competitively selected communities. It replaces traditional subsidy-based approaches with market-based strategies that encourage resident investment through neighborhood marketing and the building of social connections. Newly incorporated in 2004, Healthy Neighborhoods has in the past year developed commitments from ten banks to pool $38 million over a five-year period for below-market mortgage financing and rehabilitation loans in the eighteen neighborhoods served by ten nonprofit organizations. This grant supports staff, consultant services, and neighborhood grants.Live Baltimore Home Center $75,000
The eight-year-old Live Baltimore Home Center is a national model for programs that increase investment in overlooked and undervalued urban neighborhoods. In the past year, the Home Center published two City Living Resource Guides; attracted more than 3,000 people to home-buying fairs and educational events; and implemented the third year of a marketing campaign to encourage Washington, D.C., residents to move to Baltimore. This grant provides support for marketing activities and core staff.Metropolitan Baltimore Housing Counselors Network $45,000
The Counselors Network is a new, all-volunteer association of professional housing counselors from thirty nonprofits in the Baltimore region. Each year, local housing counselors help thousands of households make sound financial choices during the home-buying or refinancing process. The Network is organizing training and professional certification activities for the counselors for 2006. This grant will support local training by NeighborWorks America.
Nonprofit Sector
Thirteen grants totaling $155,000 were authorized in this category in 2005. Nonprofit-sector grants are made in two categories: grants to individual nonprofit groups for organizational development and grants to organizations that strengthen the leadership and management of nonprofits throughout the region.
Organizational Development
Eleven management assistance grants were awarded in the following categories:Strategic Planning
Grants for strategic planning help organizations evaluate priorities and set long-range goals.Alternative Directions $8,500
Alternative Directions was founded in 1979 to help formerly incarcerated men and women become contributing members of their communities and reconnect with their families. It is preparing for an executive transition as its founder plans to leave in 2006.Bon Secours of Maryland Foundation $5,000
Bon Secours leads effective community and workforce development programs in West and Southwest Baltimore and is developing a comprehensive investment plan for its work.Experience Corps Baltimore $10,000
Incubated by the Greater Homewood Community Corporation in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health, Experience Corps is developing its own governance structure and plan in anticipation of a major expansion of its work: connecting older adults as tutors for students in underperforming public elementary schools.Maryland Humanities Council $10,000
The Council, now located in newly renovated Midtown quarters, offers programs that broaden public understanding and appreciation of the diverse heritage, culture, and traditions of Maryland's communities.Rebuilding Together Baltimore $8,500
Rebuilding Together has repaired 850 homes for low-income families, seniors, and people with disabilities since the founding of the Baltimore chapter in 1989. It hired its first full-time executive director in 2004.Fundraising and Board Development
Grants for fundraising and board development help organizations diversify and expand income and foster the ability of boards to achieve fundraising goals.Baltimore Regional Initiative Developing Genuine Equality $5,000
Founded four years ago, BRIDGE organizes congregations to advocate for increased affordable housing, with a special focus on implementing inclusionary zoning polices in suburban jurisdictions.Children's Scholarship Fund of Baltimore, Inc. $8,000
Since its founding in 1998, the Children's Scholarship Fund has provided support for 1,021 children from low- and moderate-income families to attend private schools, providing an important alternative to the public school system.Comprehensive Housing Assistance, Inc. $6,500
CHAI is an accomplished twenty-three-year-old community development organization that focuses on neighborhood revitalization and affordable senior housing in Northwest Baltimore. CHAI completed a strategic plan in early 2005 and is now developing an implementation plan.Everyman Theatre $7,500
Everyman Theatre was founded in 1990 as a professional company of artists from the region. The popular Theatre is developing a capital campaign strategy for relocation to an expanded facility.South Baltimore Learning Center $8,500
Founded in 1990, the Center improves the self-sufficiency of adults through literacy and technology programs. The Center is developing a funding strategy to replace deep federal cuts and continue with implementation of its recently completed strategic plan.Program Evaluation
Grants for evaluation help organizations assess program impact and plan for program improvement.Business Volunteers Unlimited of Maryland $7,500
Since 2003, BVU has developed a base of corporate members from which it recruits and trains professionals for local nonprofit board service.
Nonprofit Sector Development
Two grants were awarded to the following organizations:Business Volunteers Unlimited of Maryland $30,000
Business Volunteers Unlimited was launched in 2003 as a board leadership resource for nonprofits and corporations. BVU trains executives from the ranks of its corporate membership for placement on nonprofit boards. The organization has forty-three corporate members and has made more than 100 board matches. This grant provides general support.Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations $40,000
The Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations is a national leader in providing education and management assistance to nonprofits. The Maryland NonprofitsÕ Executive Transition Initiative and its Management Consulting Services are in high demand. Transition services help board leaders through the important and complicated process of staff leadership change. The Consulting Services program provides a range of organizational development assistance to nonprofits. This grant supports both programs.Regional Initiatives
During 2005, the Foundation authorized four grants totaling $205,000 to support regional initiatives.
Baltimore Collegetown Network $30,000
The Baltimore region and its colleges and universities are home to more than 75,000 students, employ more than 27,000 people, and are conservatively estimated to have an annual economic impact of $3.3 billion. Since 2002, thirteen Network institutions have worked to reinforce the region's identity as a college town; improve the experience for students; attract and retain the best students, faculty, and staff; and promote higher education's economic impact. This grant provides continued support for print and online communications.Citizens Planning and Housing Association $100,000
Citizens Planning and Housing Association's regional goals include the creation of a comprehensive regional transit system. CPHA's advocacy helped secure the State's authorization of $227 million in planning funds for the Red Line of the Regional Rail Plan, followed by $100 million in federal funding for Red and Green Line projects. This grant supports staff working on transit and housing issues.Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore $25,000
Established as the Greater Baltimore Alliance in 1996, the Economic Alliance implements a regional economic development agenda in collaboration with the chief executives of Baltimore City, adjacent counties, area corporations, and the State of Maryland. The Economic Alliance is focusing on sectors and industries in which the region has a competitive advantageÐthe life sciences, financial services, and information technology in the defense sector. This grant supports the organization's life sciences team.Baltimore Transit Alliance $50,000
The Baltimore Transit Alliance, a 45-member group of corporate leaders, is working to marshal the significant political will and financial resources needed to move forward with the Baltimore Regional Rail Plan. The Rail Plan, established in 2002, calls for a coordinated, modern, and far-reaching system of rail and bus service that effectively connects the region's communities and economic centers. This grant provides support for staff and related costs for the Alliance, which is housed at the Greater Baltimore Committee.Established Program Areas
In its established program areas, the Foundation awarded twenty-two grants during 2005, totaling $1,385,000.
Community Affairs
Baltimore Efficiency & Economy Foundation, Inc. $10,000
The Baltimore Efficiency & Economy Foundation offers analysis and advice to improve City agency operation, and it connects the City to partnership opportunities with the private sector. BEEF's Selling City Owned Properties Efficiently (SCOPE) program is a partnership between the City and the Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors and its members to sell publicly owned vacant housing. In the past three years, 174 properties have been released to Realtors for sale, with a special focus on Reservoir Hill. Sales of some 100 properties have sent $3.6 million to the City's General Fund. This grant provides support for documentation and evaluation of the program's economic and neighborhood impact.Bon Secours of Maryland Foundation $75,000
Established in 1994, the Foundation is an effective force for community and economic development in Southwest Baltimore. It works in close partnership with local leaders to implement a community plan for eleven neighborhoods, including a financial services center, open space improvement, workforce programs, and development of affordable rental housing. This grant supports expansion of the Clean and Green program.Enoch Pratt Free Library $25,000
The staff and resources of the special Grants Collection at the Enoch Pratt Library assist more than 1,000 people each year from the region's nonprofit organizations in their research on grantmaking. The nonprofits that use the collection are primarily volunteer organizations serving disadvantaged clienteles. This grant provides continued support for staff and programming.Neighborhoods of Greater Lauraville $20,000
Neighborhoods of Greater Lauraville was founded in 2001 to encourage new investment in Lauraville, Arcadia, Beverly Hills, Moravia-Walther, Morgan Park, and Waltherson. It is a Healthy Neighborhoods organization. This grant provides general support to the organization during a period of staff transition.The Reinvestment Fund $50,000
The Reinvestment Fund is a Philadelphia-based community development financial institution that is expanding its work in Baltimore. Its policy and research group will analyze the patterns and causes of mortgage foreclosure that exact a high price from families and neighborhoods in Baltimore and across the State. This grant supports research staff and expenses.Shefa Fund $20,000
The Shefa Fund is a national public foundation established in 1998 that merged with the Jewish Fund for Justice in 2005. Shefa's TZEDEC initiative encourages Jewish giving in the field of community development in six cities nationally. In Baltimore, TZEDEC has raised $1 million in loan capital and is working to raise another $800,000. This grant provides general support.Education
Children's Scholarship Fund of Baltimore, Inc. $50,000
The Children's Scholarship Fund improves educational opportunities for Baltimore families by offering privately funded tuition assistance. Scholarship commitments of $950,000 annually help 600 students attend private schools. This grant supports student scholarships.East Baltimore Development Inc. $50,000
Complementing the major physical redevelopment moving forward in East Baltimore is an equally ambitious Education Initiative, the first element of which, an early-childhood program for preschool children, is in the planning stages. The effort recognizes the importance of high-quality education options in the success of the planned mixed-income community. This grant supports staffing of the Education Initiative.Foundations, Inc. $40,000
With the 2003 establishment of the Maryland Public Charter School Act, interest in alternative public schools begun by the city's New Schools initiative greatly accelerated. In Fall 2005, five new charters and seven conversion schools provided expanded public school choice to thousands of Baltimore City parents and students. This grant provides support for an assessment of the technical assistance needs of the schools to be conducted by Foundations, Inc., a nonprofit with a national track record of assistance to charter schools.GreenMount School $40,000
GreenMount is a twelve-year-old independent, parent-governed school in Wyman Park that attracts a diverse array of students from across the city. GreenMount is known for its creative and effective curriculum and its engaged board of directors. This grant provides assistance to the School during a period of leadership transition.Johns Hopkins University $200,000
This grant, applied at the discretion of the University's President, supports the Goldseker Scholars Program, which last year provided financial aid to thirteen undergraduates from the Baltimore metropolitan area.Midtown Academy $30,000
In Fall 2005, Midtown Academy made the transition from New School to one of the city's first fifteen charter schools. The Academy is known for its diverse student body and its engaged parent volunteers and board. It is a key asset to its nearby Bolton Hill and Reservoir Hill neighborhoods. This grant supports volunteer coordination and fundraising activities.Morgan State University $200,000
At the discretion of the University's President, this grant supports the Goldseker Fellows Program, which in the past year provided fellowships to seventy graduate students from the Baltimore metropolitan area.University of Baltimore Center for Community Technology Services $25,000
The Center for Community Technology Services helps small- and medium-sized nonprofits in the Baltimore region use appropriate technology to improve efficiency and effectiveness. In the past year, CCTS provided technology assistance to 35 nonprofit organizations. This grant supports program staff.University of Baltimore Foundation, $30,000
UB is seeking to expand its collaboration with communities and local peer institutions. In the coming year, UB will coordinate the work of students and faculty from UB, Goucher College, and the Maryland Institute College of Art to work in the Station North district neighborhoods. This grant supports a volunteer coordinator and other related costs of the university-community partnership.University of Baltimore Merrick School of Business $25,000
The University of Baltimore is part of a collaborative that launched a social enterprise development program for eight nonprofits in 2003. This grant supports the development of a social enterprise business planning program based at UB that will serve ten to twelve nonprofits in 2006.University of Maryland:
School of Social Work Community Outreach Service $150,000
The School of Social Work at the University of Maryland is an important pipeline for new professional talent for the local nonprofit sector. For the most part, skilled graduates have pursued careers in the human services field. This grant supports development of a new cadre of community development professionals by connecting fifteen Neighborhood Fellows to Healthy Neighborhoods organizations and partner nonprofits over two years.
Human ServicesAdvocates for Children and Youth $15,000
Advocates for Children and Youth was founded in 1987 to promote public policies that improve the well-being of children in Maryland. The leadership of the organization is undertaking a strategic planning initiative to assess its strategic direction and to determine the resources it needs to succeed. This grant supports the engagement of consulting services to facilitate the strategic plan.THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore $200,000
This grant continues support for the Goldseker Foundation Aid and Education Fund. The fund helps new immigrants settling in the Baltimore region become independent and self-supporting.Christopher Place Employment Academy, $75,000
Christopher Place Employment Academy is an eighteen-month residential program for addiction recovery and job readiness and placement. This grant supports the Academy's expansion as part of Catholic Charities' special drive to establish a multiprogram human services facility in East Baltimore.East Harbor Community Development Corporation $25,000
East Harbor CDC was established in 1999 as the development entity for the local Empowerment Zone Village Center. The organization provides a range of financial counseling services in East Baltimore and is increasing its capacity to provide bilingual services for the fast-growing Spanish-speaking immigrant community there. This grant provides support for the organization's Latino Financial Education Program.Friends of the Family $30,000
Friends of the Family is the State's intermediary for twenty family support centers. Friends of the Family's strong partnership with State government is in transition as the agency moves from a funding relationship with the Maryland Department of Human Resources to the Maryland State Department of Education. This grant supports the transition and work to expand the organization's private fundraising strategy.