Archive

Recently, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland ruled in favor of a transgender student in a suit filed by OSI-supported FreeState Justice, the ACLU, and the ACLU of Maryland. The court ruled that students’ right to use the restroom and locker rooms that correspond with their gender identity is protected by […]

This week, the Daily Record reported on the recent publication of two studies that suggest that while Maryland’s new pretrial release rule decreased the use of cash bail, additional education and resources are needed. One of the studies, published by the Maryland Office of the Public Defender and funded by Open Society Institute, sent 64 […]

On April 17, the Washington Symphony Players will host a spring concert to benefit Maryland Heroin Awareness Advocates (MHAA), a grassroots, non-profit organization dedicated to providing services and resources to those who are struggling with substance use disorders. MHAA also offers peer support to families through Save Our Children Family Peer Support groups. The benefit […]

This week, the Civilian Oversight Task Force—the all-volunteer panel tasked with reviewing civilian oversight of the Baltimore Police Department as part of the city’s Consent Decree with the Department of Justice—approved a set of principals that include a “vastly expanded role for community members in an array of police matters, including the handling of officer […]

Today, the Baltimore Sun wrote about a recent collaboration between OSI and the Baltimore City Health Department to develop a real-time tool to monitor how many drug treatment slots are available in the city at any moment. The hope is to streamline the process connecting those who seek treatment for substance use disorders to open beds in […]

On Saturday, April 21, The Featherstone Foundation, started by 2013 OSI Community Fellow, Lanaea Featherstone, and Cristo Rey will host “Mi Dinero, Mi Destino,” a free, financial education conference which will include topics such as budgeting and financial goal-setting, how to purchase a first home, and understanding interest rates and credit. A continental breakfast, lunch, […]

Last week, the “Only in Your State” blog featured the Book Thing of Baltimore, which was founded by 2000 Community Fellow, Russell Wattenberg. Wattenberg established the Book Thing to be a book distribution network system to provide used and remainder books to non-profit organizations and individuals throughout Baltimore City.

This week, the Baltimore Police Monitoring Team, which was put in place as part of the Consent Decree, issued a Request for Applications (RFA) for neighborhood liaisons. Neighborhood liaisons will facilitate the Monitoring Team’s community engagement efforts by providing localized points of access to the Monitoring Team across the City. The Monitoring Team will hire up […]