The Abell Foundation is a left-of-center private grantmaking organization operating in the state of Maryland with a focus on the city of Baltimore. The Foundation focuses on “concentrated poverty” distributing grants on issues ranging from education to environmentalism.

Its president, Robert C. Embry, Jr., is a former liberal elected official who has served liberal administrations at the Baltimore local and national levels. ^[1]

History

The Abell Foundation was founded on December 31, 1953 by Harry C. Black. ^[2] Black served as the Chairman of the A.S. Abell Company, the former publisher of the Baltimore Sun. ^[3] Today, the Abell Foundation has grown to become the largest private foundation focused on Maryland. ^[4]

The Abell Foundation aims to solve issues of “concentrated poverty” by focusing on social, economic, and environmental problems. ^[5] Since 1953, the Foundation has distributed more than $339 million in grants to nonprofits and vulnerable business start-ups. ^[6]

Grantmaking Activity

In 2018, the Foundation approved $13,102,817 in grants, with amounts ranging from $500 to $500,000. ^[7] Most of the grant funding in 2018 went to community development projects (23.7%), workforce development (19.7%), and education (19.7%). ^[8]

The Foundation gave its largest community development grant in 2018 to Emerging Technology Centers, Inc ($275,000) to provide instruction, workshops, mentorship, investor networking, and free office space to emerging entrepreneurs. ^[9] The Foundation targeted smaller grants at poverty reduction, giving to food banks, urban farming initiatives, and fuel for low-income households. ^[10]

The Foundation gave its largest 2018 grant in the education sector, offering $500,000 to Baltimore’s Promise to provide occupational training and employment for 500 Baltimore City Schools graduates who did not go to college. ^[11] In workforce development, the Foundation provided its largest grant to the Center for Urban Families in the amount of $350,000 to support job training and placement. ^[12] The Foundation gave further grants to organizations which advocate for left-of-center labor policies, like doubling the minimum wage. ^[13]

The Abell Foundation has also given significant grants to left-of-center organizations in criminal justice reform and environmental policy. In 2019 alone, the Foundation gave $100,000 to the ACLU Foundation of Maryland, $50,000 to the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and $20,000 to the Justice Policy Institute. ^[14] The Foundation is also involved in funding many left-wing environmentalist organizations, including giving $15,000 to the Environmental Defense Fund, $50,000 to the Environmental Integrity Project, and $60,000 to the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN). ^[15]

People and Funding

Most of the Abell Foundation’s funding came from the 1986 sale of the Abell Company. ^[16] Current president Robert C. Embry, Jr. attended Harvard Law School before getting involved in Maryland local politics. ^[17] Embry served as a city councilman and as the head of the Baltimore Department of Housing and Community Development, before working in urban development for President Jimmy Carter’s administration. ^[18] He has been president of the Abell Foundation since the sale of the Abell Company in 1987. ^[19]