Updates

Board of Directors Approve Nine Grants in Spring and Summer Funding Rounds

August 9, 2010 -- The Board of Directors of the Goldseker Foundation have approved nine grants totaling $220,000 in the Foundation’s established and priority program areas.

Grants were awarded to the following organizations:

Audubon Maryland-DC $20,000
Operating support

The Baltimore Station $10,000
Management Assistance Grant

Banner Neighborhoods Community Corporation $85,000 over two years
Program support

Community Law Center $25,000
Program support

Creative Alliance $15,000
Program support for community outreach programs

Downtown Baltimore Family Alliance $35,000
Program and Operating Support

Downtown Baltimore Family Alliance $5,000
Management Assistance Grant

Mount Vernon Place Conservancy $15,000
Master plan

Women’s Industrial Exchange $10,000
Management Assistance Grant

Foundation Announces Funding for Non-Profit Management Assistance Grants

June 21, 2010 -- Once again, the Goldseker Foundation is making available a limited amount of grant funds to help support the well-defined organizational development initiatives of non-profit organizations. The Foundation will consider grant proposals of up to $10,000 for Management Assistance Grants to help non-profit leaders engage the consulting expertise needed to facilitate initiatives such as strategic planning, program evaluation, and fund development and sustainability.

The Foundation will also again consider applications for grants to explore partnerships, strategic alliances, mergers, or other organizational restructuring activities to enhance the ability of nonprofit organizations to sustain services and fulfill their missions in the future. Joint applications in this category are encouraged.

Management Assistance Grants are awarded competitively and reflect the Foundation’s recognition of the importance of investing in projects that strengthen the nonprofit sector. In 2009, the Foundation awarded $190,000 in Management Assistance Grants to seventeen organizations.

Non-profit 501(c)3 organizations that work principally in metropolitan Baltimore are eligible to apply. Applications will be accepted from organizations whose programs fit within the Foundation’s published areas of interest and grant making policies. Guidelines for the 2010 Management Assistance Grants and instructions for applying can be found by clicking here.

In 2010, the Foundation will accept Management Assistance Grant applications throughout the year. Organizations may only apply once in a given year. Applications received by March 19, 2010 will be considered in our spring funding round. Applications received by August 1, 2010 will be considered in our autumn funding round.

For more information, contact Laurie Latuda at 410-837-6115 or by email at lmlatuda@goldsekerfoundation.org.

Building Stronger City Neighborhoods and Schools

Karen Stokes, Executive Director of Greater Homewood Community Corporation, spoke recently on WYPR’s “Midday” with host Dan Rodricks about how the Healthy Neighborhoods and Neighborhood School Partnership initiatives are making living in Baltimore City increasingly attractive to middleclass families and households. To hear the conversation, please click here.

Neighborhood-School Partnership Grants Press Release

February 26, 2010 -- Recognizing the interdependence of neighborhoods and schools—the quality of one directly impacting the quality of the other—the Goldseker Foundation today announced grants to five Neighborhood-School Partnerships in Baltimore City totaling $435,000. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Baltimore City Public School CEO Dr. Andrés Alonso, Catholic Schools Associate Superintendent Dr. Skipp Sanders, and Healthy Neighborhoods Inc. President Mark Sissman joined Goldseker Foundation President Dr. Timothy Armbruster to announce the grants during an event at one of the partner schools, Calvin M. Rodwell Elementary School. For the full text of the press release, click here.

Anticipated 2010 Grant Budget

February 2010 -- Unfortunately, private foundations have not been more cushioned from the economic downturn than any other segment of the private, nonprofit sector. And the Goldseker Foundation, try as we might, is no exception.

Although asset levels have rebounded fairly well since last spring’s market lows, we nonetheless anticipate a grant budget for this year substantially lower than for 2009. This means not only that we won’t be able to assume much in the way of new initiatives, but also that we’ll need to make significant cuts to many of the organizations and projects we have supported in the past. Current and prior grant recipients should plan accordingly.

If you have any questions about the Foundation’s grantmaking in 2010, please contact Foundation staff.

Latest In Occasional Paper Series

November 25, 2009 -- The Foundation’s latest occasional paper, Unfinished Business: Lessons from Baltimore, an essay by Foundation President and Chief Executive Officer Timothy D. Armbruster, is now available. Prompted by thirty years’ experience in Baltimore’s civic and philanthropic communities, the paper is a series of personal reflections on the effective use of private funds and some lessons his time in the Baltimore region has taught him about restoring urban communities. Click here to read Unfinished Business: Lessons From Baltimore.