Grants

The Abell Foundation awards grants to nonprofit community partners working to improve the quality of life in Baltimore. We provide seed funding for innovative pilots, support for ongoing community programs and services, and funding for capital projects. In addition to providing grant funding, the Foundation supports our nonprofit partners through connection to our local and national networks, as well as our team’s deep experience in and knowledge of Baltimore as it relates to our program areas.

Learn More About Our Process

Eligibility and Review Criteria

For all nonprofit organizations seeking grant funding, regardless of the request amount. 

Small Grants Process

For grant requests of $10,000 or less.

Reviewed on a rolling basis. There is no deadline to apply.

Regular Grants Process

For grant requests greater than $10,000.

Reviewed at one of the Foundation’s five annual Board meetings.

Submit an Application

Considering Applying?

First-time applicants with grant requests greater than $10,000 should submit a short letter of inquiry prior to submitting a regular grant application. For guidance on what to include in your LOI, please reference our frequently asked questions.

Submit an LOI

Ready to Apply for a Small Grant?

For first-time or returning applicants with grant requests of $10,000 or less. We accept and review small grant applications on a rolling basis. There is no deadline to apply for a small grant.

Start a Small Grant Application

Ready to Apply for a Regular Grant?

For returning applicants and those who have a verified fit with the Foundation’s priorities for requests greater than $10,000. Regular grant applications are reviewed at one of five Board meetings each year.

Start a Regular Grant Application

Returning to a Saved Application or Submitting a Report?

Log into the grant portal below to return to your saved application or submit a report for a previously awarded grant.

Return to Your Application or Submit a Report

See Our Past Grants

Maryland New Directions

$120,000 / 2020 / Workforce Development

Maryland New Directions, Inc., (MND) is a private, nonprofit, career counseling and job placement agency that provides occupational skills training, including the Commercial Transportation Careers training program.  MND also provides other employment services, including computer literacy training, walk-in job search and application support and individual job coaching.  Funding from Abell will support MND in assisting more than 425 job seekers in Baltimore.

Maryland Hunger Solutions

$50,000 / 2020 / Health and Human Services

Maryland Hunger Solutions (MHS) is an initiative of the Food Research and Action Center, a national research and advocacy organization that works to eradicate hunger in the United States.  MHS works with state and local government agencies and nonprofit partners to maximize participation in federal nutrition programs, increase access to healthy, affordable food in low-income communities, and improve public policies in Maryland to reduce hunger and improve nutrition.  This grant provides operating support to MHS as it works to respond to increased demand for assistance in accessing federal nutrition benefits in the wake of job losses caused by COVID-19.    

Maryland Dental Action Coalition, Inc.

$45,000 / 2020 / Health and Human Services

he Maryland Dental Action Coalition (MDAC) is a statewide dental access advocacy group.  In 2019, MDAC and other groups successfully advocated for the creation of a waiver program to provide comprehensive dental benefits to Maryland adutls who are eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare.  MDAC launched a collaborative of professionals from the dental, health and social services sectors to support the implementation of the waiver program.  This grant supports the collaborative.  

Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering

$150,000 / 2020 / Community Development

The Baltimore Healthcare Innovator Retention Program fellowship stipends enable talented Johns Hopkins University biomedical engineering students to continue working on promising healthcare innovations after they complete their graduate studies. These teams of Fellows operative as virtual startups creating commercially viable products, seeking follow-on funding, and creating new companies. The program maximizes the translation of discovery and invention from the University biomedical program into income-generating companies which have the potential to generate local employment.

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

$99,954 / 2020 / Health and Human Services

The SPARC Center is a drop-in center designed to meet the needs of female sex workers and other vulnerable women in Baltimore City. Part of a federally-funded research study on the needs of female sex workers, the center provides a range of health and social services to address the many challenges and barriers to service that these women face.  This grant provides funding for a case manager and a part-time psychiatrist so the center can better meet clients’ mental health and social service needs.    

Header photo courtesy of Thread.