Philadelphia Bar Foundation: Grants for Philadelphia
/OVERVIEW: The Philadelphia Bar Foundation supports legal services and poverty-fighting efforts for vulnerable populations in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
FUNDING AREAS: Legal services, poverty, justice, youth, immigration, homelessness, women, disability rights
IP TAKE: This highly focused funder provides grants to nonprofits that offer legal aid. The Philadelphia Bar Foundation is good to know for Philadelphians who are facing poverty, abuse and discrimination.
PROFILE: Established in 1964, the Philadelphia Bar Foundation (PBF) is one of the leading Bar Foundations in the U.S. and is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. PBF is an independent charitable organization and the only foundation solely dedicated to supporting Philadelphia’s legal services. The foundation "removes barriers to justice, engages the community in support of civil legal aid and builds system-wide capacity in order to strengthen the provision of quality legal services and to ensure that all individuals understand their rights to equal justice under law.” It funds local efforts for legal services, poverty, justice, youth, immigration, homelessness, women’s rights and disability rights.
The Philadelphia Bar Foundation awards grants and has pursues other programs and partnerships too. It envisions a Philadelphia where everyone has equal access to justice. PBF usually awards grants to around 40 organizations each year and committed over $3 million in grants and other assistance over a recent five-year period. PBF awards general operating support and project support, and it makes a priority of awarding unrestricted grants to improve nonprofit sustainability. Specific interests of PBF include health and elder justice, justice and court reform, anti-poverty advocacy and housing and homelessness issues. The funder is also concerned with military and veterans’ issues, child welfare, education, immigration employment, women’s rights and disability rights. In addition to grants, PBF also offers training programs, special awards, fellowships and technical assistance to nonprofits.
Grants range between about $1,000 and $50,000. Learn more about this funder’s local giving by examining its recent tax records. Grantmaking focuses on Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Past local grantees include the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and Disability Rights Pennsylvania.
This foundation often unsolicited grant applications from nonprofits and provides details about the application process on its website. The annual grantmaking process typically runs from May through December and involves submitting a detailed application, initial review, site visits and interviews, prioritizing by the grants committee and final decisions at a December board meeting. Direct general questions to the staff at info@philabarfoundation.org or 215-238-6337.
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