Grants program
Overview
Once again the Board of Trustees of the Allegheny County Bar Foundation will be awarding legal aid grants this year through its newly-updated Fellows GIVE Grants. Last year, the ACBF awarded $68,427 in grants to 13 local legal service agencies. This year, we have made important updates to the application and review process.
The ACBF is now offering fixed-amount grant awards to approved grantees. Each application cycle, there will be a set number of grant awards available at the same amount. For the pilot year (2022), there are 6 grant awards available at $10,000 each.
The new grant application process involves two rounds: first, a Letter of Inquiry submitted online; second, an opportunity for invited applicants to pitch the program in-person to ACBF Fellows, who fund the grants program. Pitches will be delivered live at a private event, and Fellows will vote on the programs they want to fund after hearing the proposals. Pitches will be limited to 3-5 minutes in length, and applicants are encouraged to think creatively on how to propose their program. Audio/Visual technology is not permitted for the pitches - please, no keynotes. Information from the LOI will be published for ACBF Fellows to review ahead of the pitch event to get a basic understanding of the organization and the proposed project/program.
The ACBF grant timeline will be as follows:
- Aug. 5, 2022: Online Letter of Inquiry (LOI) form opens for submission
- Aug. 26, 2022: Deadline for LOI submissions
- Early September, 2022: ACBF Grants Committee meets to vet applications for mission alignment
- Sept. 9, 2022: Applicants receive notice of approval or denial to move to live pitch round
- Mid-October 2022: Pitch event takes place; ACBF Fellows vote on proposals; grant recipients announced following the event.
Please submit your organization’s Letter of Inquiry using the online LOI form by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 26, 2022. Please do not use your own form. It is anticipated that grant funds will be distributed in January 2023.
If you have any questions or issues in the application process, please contact Stephanie Selya at 412-402-6674 or sselya@acba.org.