Philadelphia Bar Foundation Awards $120,000 in Supplemental Grants to Its Civil Legal Aid Partners
PHILADELPHIA — In response to deep and unprecedented cuts in government funding to its nonprofit partners, the Board of Trustees of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation has taken decisive action to strengthen the safety net for some of the region’s most vulnerable residents. The Foundation has approved $120,000 in supplemental grants that will help its nonprofit partners continue to provide critical civil legal services in the face of mounting financial challenges.
This emergency funding represents an additional two percent distribution from the Foundation’s Board-Directed Investment Funds, and is above and beyond its regular annual grants. This action directly reflects our commitment to upholding the rule of law and strengthening democratic norms by ensuring that all members of our community have access to vital civil legal services. The grants will help partners continue their essential work despite significant reductions in public funding.
“These supplemental grants are intended to help organizations remain resilient and responsive to urgent community needs,” said Niki T. Ingram, Esq., President of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. “This emergency funding underscores our deep commitment to ensuring equal and equitable access to justice across the Philadelphia region, regardless of income, background, or zip code.”
The Foundation is proud to announce that the nonprofit partners receiving 2025 Supplemental grants are:
• Disability Rights Pennsylvania
• Justice at Work
• Nationalities Service Center
• Pennsylvania HIAS Indigent Immigrant Legal Services, Inc.
• Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center
• Pennsylvania Innocence Project
The invitation to apply for a Supplemental grant was extended to all the Foundation’s current nonprofit partners and focused on those that primarily serve Philadelphia residents and were able to document how the organization would handle the actual or highly probable loss of at least one-third of their government funding.
Applications for this funding were due May 16, 2025.
For more information about the Foundation’s work and its nonprofit partners, visit www.philabarfoundation.org.