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 for a Small Grant?

If you have never received an Abell small grant (requests of $10,000 or less), you must attend an information session to confirm fit with eligibility criteria and funding priorities prior to submitting a small grant application. 

Sign up for an info session

Considering Applying for a Regular Grant?

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?

If you are a returning applicant or have met our eligibility criteria and requirements and are ready to apply for a grant, you may do so on the apply page.

Start a 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

Housing Authority of Baltimore City

$92,625 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
Second-year funding of the Special Mobility Housing Choice Voucher Program established in accordance with the Thompson v. HUD partial consent decree. The program provides financial assistance and counseling to families served by the Section 8 Mobility Counseling Program, and is designed to encourage rental assistance recipients to move out of inner-city neighborhoods into surrounding neighborhoods in the region.

Housing Authority of Baltimore City

$108,800 / 2004 / Health and Human Services
Two grants providing security deposits and post-placement transportation assistance for the Special Mobility Housing Choice Voucher Program. This program is available to residents of public housing and applicants on the public housing/Section 8 waiting list; applicants must pass a criminal background check and be willing to move to a non-impacted area. Program counselors review participants’ credit histories and finances, encourage them to develop a savings plan, and help in the search for housing.

KIPP Baltimore, Inc .

$100,000 / 2004 / Education
Toward operating expenses for the 2004-2005 school year at the KIPP Ujima Academy for fifth to eighth-grade students. KIPP offers an academically intensive college-preparatory middle school program as part of the Baltimore City Public School System’s New Schools Initiative. This academic model requires students to spend an additional two and a half hours a day at school, attend summer school, and enrichment activities on Saturdays.

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.

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.

Header photo courtesy of Thread.