ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Wes Moore today launched the second year of the Engaging Neighborhoods, Organizations, Unions, Governments, and Households (ENOUGH) Initiative, announcing more than $19 million in funding to support ENOUGH communities. The announcement marks a continuation of the Moore-Miller Administration’s work to address concentrated child poverty in Maryland, supported by $18 million in ENOUGH grant funds for 28 high-poverty communities across 12 counties. Philanthropic partners will commit $1.5 million through the ENOUGH Alliance to support the implementation of programs that increase access to good jobs, good schools, quality health care, and safe neighborhoods.
“Less than two years ago, we committed to an unapologetic, unprecedented, and bipartisan attack on child poverty in Maryland,” said Gov. Moore. “Now, at a time when the federal government is effectively telling communities of color and children living in poverty, ‘You’re on your own,’ Maryland is stepping up and doubling down. ENOUGH is about making government work better for the people it serves and ensuring that Maryland’s decade is written by our communities, not simply for them.”
Launched in December 2024, Maryland’s ENOUGH Initiative is a first-in-the-nation program that aims to reduce the number of children living in poverty through community-led, government-supported solutions informed by residents’ lived experiences and expertise, data, and cross-sector partnerships. The inaugural year of ENOUGH awarded more than $13 million in grants to eligible communities with high rates of concentrated childhood poverty in 12 counties across the state.
Bridging a diverse set of organizations, awardees include partnerships made up of community-based organizations, local government actors, community schools, and other local entities. In their first year, ENOUGH communities built a cohesive network of more than 550 partners, including K-12 schools, nonprofits, housing providers, employers, and health care institutions. ENOUGH communities have also served more than 12,000 Marylanders to date through programming and events.
“We can’t fight childhood poverty by working in siloes, which is why, in its first year, the ENOUGH Initiative has successfully brought together local governments, state agencies, Community Schools, and philanthropy,” said Governor’s Office for Children Special Secretary Carmel Martin. “By strategically forming partnerships and maximizing resources to high-poverty communities, ENOUGH is ensuring the full breadth of the state’s anti-poverty work is targeted first and foremost to neighborhoods who need it most. In our second year we are committed to building upon this foundation, ensuring sustainable, neighborhood-driven change so that every child and family in Maryland can thrive.”
In addition to the ENOUGH grant program funding, the ENOUGH Initiative maximizes resources for high-poverty communities by leveraging additional state government and philanthropic funding streams. State agencies have also provided direct assistance to ENOUGH communities by helping them apply for and access state government grants. The approach has helped ENOUGH communities receive more than $20 million in additional state government grants, including to provide rental assistance, job training, opportunities for first generation college students, and community-led public safety solutions.
The ENOUGH Alliance—an independent coalition of philanthropic and private sector organizations that Governor Moore launched this year—has also committed more than $100 million in aligned funding to support Maryland’s work to fight child poverty. As a result of these efforts, ENOUGH communities have seen more than a 3:1 return on the state’s initial investment in the ENOUGH grant program.
ENOUGH communities were selected in December 2024 through a competitive process. This year, following an open application process, two new communities will join the program in its second year. ENOUGH has three separate development pathways. As communities continue to engage in partnership, development, and planning activities, they will have the opportunity to apply for subsequent, higher level tracks in future funding cycles. The ENOUGH Initiative’s pathways include:
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Partnership Development: Grantees receive a grant to build their capacity to address the root causes of poverty at the community level. Funded activities may include building capacity to do place-based work; strengthening community engagement; and creating cross-sector partnerships in education, health, workforce, housing, public safety and community development issue areas, united in the common goal of ending childhood poverty.
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Plan Development: Grantees will work with partners including non-profits, anchor institutions, schools, local governments, unions, philanthropy, and residents to conduct community asset mapping and needs assessments, building a neighborhood action plan to end child poverty.
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Implementation: Grantees launch approved strategies built in Neighborhood Action Plans that address the three ENOUGH pillars—high-quality child care and education, healthy and economically secure families, and safe and thriving communities—and engage in ongoing progress monitoring, community engagement and continuous improvement. Grantees will also develop plans to secure and leverage additional funding streams to support their strategic vision.
For more information about ENOUGH, visit goc.maryland.gov.
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