Open Society Institute – Baltimore
Open Society Institute (OSI) – Baltimore : Audacious Thinking For Lasting Change
Advocates for Children and Youth, Inc. $80,000 over one year to engage in research, public education, technical assistance for agenda development, and community outreach to advance juvenile justice reform in Maryland American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland Foundation $100,000 over one year to support its policy analysis, education, mobilization and advocacy activities to reduce arrest […]
Reduced school suspensions by 74% by advocating to rewrite the overly punitive Baltimore City code of conduct, and funding alternatives to student suspension over several years. Addressing harsh and inequitable discipline practices, this work reversed the devastating impact of out-of-school suspensions on student achievement, gradation rates, juvenile arrests, and post-graduation success. Supported and encouraged community-based organizations to […]
Imagine listening to members of Congress making statements like the following: “One look at the current budget will show the large amount of money needed to pay for defaulted loans—about $1.4 billion for just one year alone. The amounts expended over the past 5 years for defaults have risen by 85 percent.” “During the most […]
The events that followed the death of Freddie Gray revealed several Baltimore fault lines, including a disconnect between younger generations who are awakening to the structural racism and inequality that limits their opportunity and established institutions that purport to make things better.
Addiction and Health Equity Tackled health disparities, particularly regarding drug use, to reduce inequitable outcomes for community members. Launched the Baltimore Buprenorphine Initiative, introducing a new evidence-based treatment for individuals addicted to opioids. Grew a local harm reduction movement that has spread across the state and greatly increased the availability of overdose prevention services. Led […]
In response to allegations that the bail-bonds industry has illegally bribed Maryland lawmakers, the Coalition for a Safe and Justice Maryland held a press conference in Annapolis today urging legislators not to accept donations from the industry, to return 2017 donations, and to reject any legislation put forward or promoted by the industry. (Read the Sun’s […]
“It’s an unfair system,” says Bill L, who was detained for 40 days in the Montgomery County Detention Center on $7,500 bail. “You are guilty until proven innocent. The average person won’t have the money unless you’re rich. For the poor man, $750 might as well be $10,000, or $100,000. There are people in here […]
Last night at Red Emma’s, the Baltimore Action Legal Team hosted a panel on reducing the police presence in schools. The event, part of BALT’s Lawyer Up series, featured Baltimore BLOC organizer Tre Murphy, Asst. Public Defender with the Juvenile Division of the Office of the Public Defender Jenny Egan, Director of OSI-Baltimore’s Criminal and Juvenile Justice […]
This Friday, June 19th, a wide range of local organizations will hold events and campaigns to mark Juneteenth, the oldest national commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. But as OSI grantees Job Opportunities Task Force (JOTF), Out for Justice (OFJ) and the Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT), explain on the Facebook […]
Members of the OSI-Baltimore-funded Coalition for a Safe and Just Maryland (CSJM) have made series of media appearances in recent weeks, renewing the fight for bail reform months after the state legislature turned back an attempt by the bail industry to roll back the unanimous state appeals court ruling requiring judges to consider non-financial pretrial conditions […]
OSI-Baltimore has permanently closed. It has been our honor and privilege to partner with and serve the Baltimore community for the past 25 years.
This website is available for historical purposes. It is no longer being updated.