Big-name local backers give $5M to GreenLight Fund to address city's social needs

More than 80 local investors and philanthropic organizations have pledged support for a new $5 million funding effort that will aim to address major social challenges in Baltimore.

Baltimore is the latest outpost of the GreenLight Fund, a Boston-based firm that partners with organizations in various cities to fund programming aimed at meeting unmet or under-addressed social needs. Baltimore is the 10th city in which GreenLight has launched its model. A record number of backers have committed to donate funds, including the likes of the Abell Foundation, United Way of Central Maryland, Brown Advisory and T. Rowe Price Group Inc.

John Simon, co-founder of the GreenLight Fund, said the firm looks to raise a pool of funds in each city, then partner with community groups and initiatives to tackle locally identified, unmet needs or deep-rooted disparities. Some of the social issues GreenLight funds in other cities include reducing prison recidivism, increasing kindergarten readiness, raising community college graduation rates and assisting children aging out of foster care.

“Baltimore’s strong philanthropic and nonprofit ecosystem, along with the commitment of local community, government and business leaders to find innovative ways to address persistent challenges, make the city one where GreenLight’s model is poised to make a significant impact,” Simon, who is also a managing director at Boston-based venture capital firm Sigma Prime Ventures, said in a statement.

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Source: The Baltimore Business Journal