OSI Awards Nearly $500,000 in Fellowships to Baltimore-Area Residents Working with Disadvantaged Groups
Opening Reception & Press Conference
When: Wednesday, November 12th from 12:30-1:45 pm
Where: George Washington North room, Peabody Court Hotel, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
BALTIMORE—A disabled lawyer on a mission to open polling places to handicapped voters and a language arts teacher who plans to teach English to Latino construction workers on-site are two of this year's 2003 Open Society Institute-Baltimore (OSI) fellows.
This is the sixth year in a row that OSI has offered 10 area residents almost $500,000 in grants to design and undertake projects to help make life better for Baltimore's underserved and disadvantaged. OSI will announce the fellows and award the grants at the opening reception of a three-day conference for the Baltimore fellows and their New York counterparts called "Building a Social Justice Network for Community Change." The fellows, OSI representatives and other special guests will be on hand for the announcement and will be available for interviews.
The fellows will receive $48,750 each to work full-time for 18 months implementing creative strategies to assist marginalized or disadvantaged communities in Baltimore city.
"There is so much untapped creativity in our community," said Joe Jones, president of the Center for Fathers and Workforce Development and an OSI trustee who served on this year's selection committee. "Without an OSI fellowships program most of these people could never realize their vision."
Three hundred city residents applied for the fellowships. The final ten where chosen after an extensive process, including site visits and personal interviews.
The Class of 2003 fellows will tackle issues ranging from supporting formerly incarcerated city residents as they re-enter society to helping torture victims heal and move on. Projects vary from training social justice workers in organizing techniques to using art to educate people about mental illness.
"We look for entrepreneurs," said OSI-Baltimore Director Diana Morris. "These are people who not only have a good idea, but the tenacity and know-how to develop a sustainable project and bring about significant social change to help marginalized communities in Baltimore."
Fellow Dale Reid, an attorney who uses a wheelchair, will work with disabled volunteers and the Baltimore City Board of Elections to help make the city's polling places handicap-accessible. As co-counsel at the Maryland Disability Law Center, Reid was galvanized into action when a disabled veteran came to the Center for help. During last year's primary, the veteran had to pull himself and his wheelchair up five stairs in order to be able to vote.
According to Reid, there are at least 38 other locations in Baltimore that are not handicap-accessible. He plans to work with the city to make sure funds from the Help America Vote Act of 2000 are put to use improving these locations.
"We are hoping to raise the consciousness of the city to what is happening when people with disabilities try to vote here," Reid said. "Our hope is that Baltimore can become a model of inclusiveness for other cities to follow."
Another fellow, Ameriga Strache, is working on a different sort of barrier—the inability to speak English. Stache is working with Centro de la Comunidad, an outreach center in greater Baltimore, and with area employers to provide English as a Second Language instruction to Latino construction workers at various work sites around the city.
Stache's classes, which take place in trailers on construction sites during lunch or before or after work, are free and accessible to Spanish-speakers who often do not have funds or transportation to take community classes elsewhere.
In addition to the new opportunities that learning English opens for these workers, the classes may also make them safer. Studies have shown that, while workplace accidents are decreasing for construction workers in general, they are increasing for Spanish-speaking workers.
"I feel so lucky to have been given this award to do this work," said Stache. "It is a real honor to make a difference in the lives of fellow Baltimoreans."
The Open Society Institute is a private operating and grantmaking foundation that promotes the development of open society around the world. OSI's U.S. Programs seek to strengthen democracy in the United States by addressing barriers to opportunity and justice, broadening public discussion about such barriers, and assisting marginalized groups to participate equally in civil society and to make their voices heard. U.S. Programs challenge over-reliance on the market by advocating appropriate government responsibility for human needs and promoting public interest and service values in law, medicine, and the media. OSI's U.S. Programs support initiatives in a range of areas, including access to justice for low and moderate income people; independence of the judiciary; ending the death penalty; reducing gun violence and over-reliance on incarceration; drug policy reform; inner-city education and youth programs; fair treatment of immigrants; reproductive health and choice; campaign finance reform; and improved care of the dying. OSI is part of the network of foundations, created and funded by George Soros, active in more than 50 countries around the world.
2003 OSI-Baltimore Community Fellows Class VI
Samuel Epps - Political Management Consultant Samuel will work in partnership with the Maryland Justice Coalition and the Justice Policy Institute to organize a campaign to reduce the number of Baltimoreans in prison by expanding prison aftercare and promoting treatment instead of incarceration.
Leon Faruq - Consultant/Counselor for ex-prisoner populations Leon will partner with community-based service providers to assist ex-prisoners to navigate a successful re-entry into the community. He will also encourage service providers to employ cognitive development approaches to offset the effects of incarceration and negative lifestyles.
Shawn James - Artist and School Teacher Shawn will establish the "Mural Masters" art program to provide youth with the opportunity to develop business management skills using interior and exterior mural painting as the business model. Phone: (443) 520-2797 Bridgett Muller - Professor and Bartender Bridgett is partnering with the Learning Bank of C.O.I.L. to organize holistic literacy programming for incarcerated and at-risk adults and their children.
Dale Reid - Attorney Dale will work to monitor and assist the Baltimore City Board of Elections to ensure that individuals with disabilities have access to polling places as legislated in the Help America Vote Act of 2002.
Betty Robinson - Community Organizer Betty will create a network for organizers working on variety of social justice issues so that they can share resources and organizing techniques. In addition, she will research, document and popularize the history of social justice organizing in order to inform the current work of organizers.
Steven Rubin - Photo Journalist Steven will partner with Advocates for Survivors of Torture and Trauma to provide a program of photographic instruction and art therapy to help heal and empower the victims of torture.
Mellissa Rudder - Artist Mellissa will partner with the National Alliance for the Mentally ill to de-stigmatize mental illness by developing a mask competition and traveling exhibit to empower people affected by mental illness and to educate the general public.
Ameriga Strache - Language Teacher Ameriga will establish the "On Site for English Construction" program to provide English as a Second Language instruction to Hispanic construction workers at various work sites.
Joseph Williams - Attorney and Social Worker Joseph Williams will establish "Staying Connected," a program to maintain and strengthen relationships between incarcerated women and their children. The program will identify the barriers to family reunification and make the appropriate referrals for wrap-around services to support the whole family.