The Fund for Educational Excellence is an independent nonprofit organization based in Baltimore, Maryland, serving as Baltimore City's only public education fund. Founded in 1984, the organization works to close equity and opportunity gaps for all students in Baltimore City Public Schools by functioning as a trusted partner with the school district, students, parents, funders, advocates, and local nonprofits.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$31.3M
-13.4% YoY
Annual Giving
$6.0M
+5.5% YoY
Grant Count
115
+10.6% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$53K
-4.6% YoY
Mission & Focus Areas
The Fund for Educational Excellence is committed to ensuring an excellent and equitable education for all Baltimore City Public School students. The organization believes that a strong public school system is the foundation for the health and success of Baltimore.
The organization operates through three core strategic areas:
Expand Resources — Securing and managing resources that expand opportunity for students through district fundraising, finance, and fiscal sponsorship services. The Fund provides high-level financial and grant management expertise to mission-aligned regional nonprofit organizations and community programs, allowing these organizations to focus on their programmatic goals, which often include developing innovative educational reforms and expanding student access to high-quality education.
Accelerate Solutions — Developing recommendations and innovative solutions for pressing issues in Baltimore City Public Schools. The Fund identifies challenges, researches and develops recommendations, and pushes for innovative solutions to improve the district's policies, processes, and programs. Work in this area includes publishing reports that combine strong analytics with community input, as well as providing on-demand workshops.
Recognize Excellence — Recognizing, celebrating, and promoting excellence in Baltimore City Public Schools through the Heart of the Schools program.
Grantmaking
The Fund has managed and secured over $85 million in public and private funds for Baltimore City Public Schools since 2010. Over the past six years, the Fund has managed over $50 million for its fiscal sponsorship clients and currently serves as fiscal sponsor for 25 mission-aligned initiatives.
Grant Range
s are $1,500 to $7,500 for principals.
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Baltimore City, Maryland. The organization's work is exclusively focused on Baltimore City Public Schools.
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
Annual Revenue: $21,294,754 (2024)
Annual Expenses: $27,361,712 (2024)
Total Assets: $31,258,443 (2024)
Total Liabilities: $3,290,000 (2024)
Staffing: 114 employees (2024)
The organization earned a Four-Star rating (97%) from Charity Navigator, reflecting strong financial health and accountability. The rating is based entirely on Accountability & Finance metrics, with the organization demonstrating robust governance practices including perfect scores for independent board member composition and financial oversight.
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $31,258,443 | $36,091,507 | $38,110,666 |
| Revenue | $21,294,754 | $22,332,215 | $23,197,789 |
| Expenses | $27,361,712 | $24,704,182 | $23,310,321 |
| Qualifying Distributions | — | — | — |
| Net Investment Income | $1,204,649 | $664,740 | $20,316 |
| Distributable Amount | — | — | — |
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
Grant Size Distribution
250 grants across all recorded years
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for .
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Roger Schulman — President & Chief Executive Officer (joined in 2010)
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
From 2024 filing
| Name | Title | Hours | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ROGER SCHULMAN | President & CEO | 40 | $287,207 |
| JULIA BAEZ | CEO, BALT PROMISE | 40 | $220,554 |
| CHUCK ADKINS | CFO | 40 | $207,845 |
| BRIDGET BLOUNT | CIO - BALT PROMISE | 40 | $171,204 |
| KEVIN LEARY | SR. PRGM DIR | 40 | $154,856 |
| CORRIE SCHOENBERG | SR PRGM DIR | 40 | $159,530 |
| WENDY SAMET | EX DIR - MIDDL GRD | 40 | $147,817 |
| SHARON DONDES | SR PRGM DIR. | 40 | $135,807 |
| MARK BELL | Director | 1 | — |
| BETH FELDER | CHAIR | 1 | — |
| ILENE BERMAN | VICE CHAIR | 1 | — |
| RUSSELL MOORE | VICE CHAIR | 1 | — |
| CINDA HUGHES CFA | TREASURER | 1 | — |
| DR MAXINE WOOD | SECRETARY | 1 | — |
| JILL FEINBERG | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| MELANIE HOOD-WILSON | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| MICHELE HONG | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| NANCY JORDAN-HOWARD | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| SARA MILSTEIN | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| JUSTIN A REDD | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| ARUN SUBHAS | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| NEILL THUPARI | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| SCOTT ROBERT WILSON | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
Contact Information
Address: 800 North Charles Street, Suite 400, Baltimore, MD 21201-5322
Phone: (410) 685-8300
Fax: (410) 685-1551
Email: info@ffee.org
Website: https://ffee.org
EIN: 52-1129402
IRS Status: 501(c)(3) Public Charity (tax-exempt since February 1979)
Subject Areas
Focus areas based on grantmaking activity
Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
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