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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 reach out to an Abell staff member to discuss their idea or submit a short letter of inquiry prior to submitting a regular grant application.

Contact Us or Email Us 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 a saved application or submit a report for a previously awarded grant. Report forms can be found under the “Requirements” tab.

Return to Your Application or Submit a Report

See Our Past Grants

Little Rock Missionary Baptist Church

$41,875 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
Challenge grant for renovation to the church and community center to allow for expanding outreach programs serving needy residents in East Baltimore. Working with the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute, the church offers a food pantry, a six-week summer camp for 40 children, a computer literacy program, and, in partnership with Civic Works, neighborhood cleanups and gardens.

Legal Aid Bureau, Inc.

$150,000 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
Fifth-year funding of the Child Support/Barriers to Employment Project, an initiative designed to address the financial needs of noncustodial parents with child support obligations. The program provides individual representation to more than 200 noncustodial parents, addressing systemic problems within the child support enforcement system.

The Justice Policy Institute

$50,000 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
To provide research and guidance to the Campaign for Treatment Not Incarceration, designed to reduce Maryland’s prison population and expand drug treatment and alternatives to incarceration.

The Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute

$20,000 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
For support of the Community Health Worker Program, which provides free health services to the uninsured in East Baltimore. The institute will recruit ten AmeriCorps volunteers from East Baltimore to serve as community health workers; after training, each worker will follow as many as 50 patients, providing individual medical monitoring and support through home visits and telephone calls. The status of each patient will be tracked by computers.

The Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies

$50,000 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
Second-year funding for the completion of the “State of Baltimore’s Workforce System” report, which provides a detailed description of Baltimore’s local workforce development system, focusing on the city’s network of one-stop career centers. The report includes a description of who are served by the career centers, the wages of job seekers before and after service, a listing of employers who hire career center job seekers, and an analysis of how well the career center network meets U.S. Department of Labor measures. The report is intended to provide an annual assessment of Baltimore’s workforce system, and will be used as a tool to improve the city’s services to job seekers and employers.

Header photo courtesy of Thread.