Archive

Last week, Goldman Sachs announced the 50 Recipients of its Black Women Impact Grants, designed to help nonprofits led by Black women scale their work. Eight Maryland nonprofits were selected for the awards, which range from $50,000 to $250,000. Of those, four were founded by OSI-Baltimore Community Fellows: Black Women Build – Baltimore, Inc., founded […]

Baltimore Green Map, an environmental advocacy group founded by 1998 OSI-Baltimore Community Fellow Janet Felsten, recently released its latest Jones Falls Trail Connected map, which is available online (side one and side two) and in a 24” x 17” handily folded, pocket-size print version available for free at many locations listed here. Side one includes […]

On Monday, Mayor Brandon Scott hosted a press conference at the Historic East Baltimore Community Action Coalition (HEBCAC)’s Eastside YO Center to announce the opening of applications for the city guaranteed income pilot, officially known as the Baltimore Young Families Success Fund. During the pilot, Baltimore will pay $1,000 per month to 200 young parents, […]

Last week, the 2020 cohort of OSI-Baltimore Community Fellows gathered to mark the end of their 18-month Fellowship and enter into the network of alumni fellows. The event was hosted by 2016 Fellow Eliseba Osore and 2009 Fellow Dwayne Hess, co-chairs of the Fellows Advisory Board, which works to build the strength of the fellows’ […]

This week, Mayor Brandon Scott announced the launch of a $5.5 million Guaranteed Income pilot, in which Baltimore will pay $1,000 per month to 200 young parents, from 18 to 24 years old, for two years. OSI Director Danielle Torain and OSI Advisory Board Vice Chair Joe Jones, founder and CEO of the Center for […]

Last week, Maryland’s legislation concluded after passing several major pieces of legislation, including many supported by grantees of OSI-Baltimore and the Open Society Policy Center, Open Society Foundations’ advocacy organization.  The legislative wrap-up from the OSI-supported People’s Commission to Decriminalize Maryland details significant new legislation in the areas of youth justice and the decriminalization of […]

OSI-Baltimore mourns the loss of Lois Feinblatt, a lifelong advocate for Baltimore and a dear friend of OSI, its staff, and Advisory Board.  Born into the philanthropic Hoffberger family, Lois was generous but not content providing only financial support. After graduating from Goucher College and starting a family, she became directly involved in changing conditions […]

In a new report, “The Long Game: Defund, Divest, Reform and Abolish – The resident perspective of the current debate on where we should invest our public safety dollars,” the Citizens Policing Projects shares the results of its citywide canvass conducted from June through December of 2021: “With funding support from the Open Society Institute-Baltimore […]

This week, Revolve Fund, a new philanthropic initiative backed by OSI-Baltimore, the Rockefeller Foundation, and JP Morgan Chase, launched its pilot to increase investment in businesses and nonprofits owned and led by people of color. As part of the pilot, the fund plans to provide more than $2 million in interest-free, recoverable capital to 20 […]

A new report commissioned by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and OSI-Baltimore provides context and insight into the fiscal sponsorship landscape in Baltimore and the barriers that block investment in BIPOC leaders and innovation. The report, “Mapping Baltimore’s Fiscal Leadership Landscape,” is an important step towards bolstering Baltimore’s fiscal sponsorship infrastructure as a way to […]