Rural Maryland Council Announces Fiscal Year 2025 Grant Recipients
“The Rural Maryland Council is immensely grateful to the Moore Administration and the Maryland General Assembly for this crucial funding that supports vital opportunities for rural communities across the State.” -Susan O’Neill, Board Chair
The Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund (RMPIF) supports Rural Maryland Council’s operating activities, including the Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Assistance Fund (MAERDAF), and the State’s five rural Regional Councils. The RMPIF grant program is designed to facilitate significant targeted investments in important economic and community development programs and promote regional and intergovernmental cooperation. The MAERDAF grant program provides capacity building grants to rural serving nonprofit organizations and community colleges that promote statewide and regional planning, economic and community development, youth engagement & leadership development, energy, rural broadband, and agricultural and forestry education.
The Rural Maryland Council was allocated level funding at over $9,000,000 in the Fiscal Year 2025 budget. The Council experienced a $2.25 million budget reduction to their competitive grant programming this past July, which made grant decisions extremely difficult.
| Total Requested |
204 Applications |
$19,834,402 |
| Total Awarded |
65 |
$6,129,837 |
Regional Councils: 5 Grants = $3,000,000
Per Statute, one-third of the RMPIF fund is distributed to the State’s five rural regional planning and development councils:
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Mid-Shore Regional Council | $600,000 |
| Tri-County Council for the Lower Eastern Shore | $600,000 |
| Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland | $600,000 |
| Tri-County Council for Western Maryland | $600,000 |
| Upper Shore Regional Council | $600,000 |
Regional Council activities funded through RMPIF, include:
- Equity lending
- Transportation software and systems
- Regional agricultural development and education
- Economic and small business development activities
- Summer Career Enrichment
- Rural economic research
Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund: 34 Grants = $2,367,451
The RMPIF grant program has three focus areas- Entrepreneurship, Infrastructure, and Rural Health. RMPIF Entrepreneurship includes Workforce Development, Cooperative Development and Agricultural Development. In FY2025, this program received 88 applications totaling $13,460,262 in requests. Of these requests, 34 grants totaling $2,367,451 were awarded.
RMPIF Entrepreneurship (includes Workforce Development, Cooperative
Development, and Agricultural Development): 11 Grants = $817,542
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Chesapeake Flower Exchange | $55,432 |
| Allegany College of Maryland | $250,000 |
| Asian American Center of Frederick | $27,580 |
| Cecil College | $66,261 |
| Frostburg State University – Office of Regional Development & Engagement | $119,625 |
| Maryland Rural Water Association | $63,000 |
| Shore Legal Access | $89,344 |
| Stella’s Girls Inc | $30,000 |
| The Benedictine School for Exceptional Children Foundation Incorporated | $37,300 |
| The Patuxent Partnership | $29,000 |
| Vehicles for Change, Inc. | $50,000 |
RMPIF Infrastructure: 6 Grants = $739,621
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Easton Day Care Center, Inc dba Critchlow Adkins Children’s Centers | $300,000 |
| Kent County Commissioners | $100,000 |
| Meritus Healthcare Foundation | $199,596 |
| St. Mary’s Nursing Center | $80,000 |
| Town of Williamsport | $42,525 |
| Washington County Department of Business Development | $17,500 |
RMPIF Rural Health: 17 Grants = $810,288
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Bay Community Support Services, Inc. | $50,000 |
| Caring Carroll Inc | $45,000 |
| Channel Marker, Inc | $50,000 |
| Chesapeake Housing Mission Inc. | $22,500 |
| Coalition for a Healthier Frederick County | $74,202 |
| Family & Children’s Services of Central Maryland DBA Springboard Community Services | $50,000 |
| For All Seasons, Inc. | $45,000 |
| Fort Ritchie Community Center, Inc. | $34,000 |
| Friends Aware, Inc. | $30,000 |
| Habitat For Humanity of Wicomico County, Inc. | $131,795 |
| Hospice of Chesapeake | $75,000 |
| Ivy and Pearls of Southern Maryland Community Charities, Incorporated | $8,500 |
| Partners In Care Maryland, Inc. | $37,500 |
| Salisbury Fire Department SWIFT | $13,791 |
| The Jude House | $28,000 |
| University of Maryland School of Medicine | $75,000 |
| Westminster Rescue Mission | $40,000 |
Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Assistance Fund: 26 Grants =$762,386
The MAERDAF grant program has five focus areas-Agricultural and Forestry Education, Community and Economic Development, Energy, Rural Broadband, and Youth Engagement and Leadership Development. In FY2025, this program received 111 applications totaling $3,374,140 in requests. Of these requests, 26 grants totaling $762,386 were awarded.
MAERDAF Agricultural and Forestry Education: 6 Grants = $169,400
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Appalachian Farm and Food Alliance | $24,900 |
| Evergreen Heritage Center Foundation | $22,500 |
| Forever Maryland | $13,000 |
| LEAD Maryland Foundation, Inc. | $35,000 |
| Maryland Nursery, Landscape, and Greenhouse Association, Inc. | $39,000 |
| The Greater Cumberland Committee | $35,000 |
MAERDAF Community Development: 11 Grants = $381,600
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Chesapeake Culinary Center | $45,000 |
| Community Mediation Maryland | $35,000 |
| Frostburg Fire Department No. 1, Inc. | $45,000 |
| Habitat for Humanity Choptank, Inc. | $45,000 |
| Habitat for Humanity Susquehanna | $45,000 |
| Interfaith Housing Alliance | $25,000 |
| MidShore Meals til Monday | $38,100 |
| Rebuilding Together Kent County | $45,000 |
| Salisbury Neighborhood Housing Services | $45,000 |
| The United Covenant Union | $3,500 |
| Washington County Historical Society, Inc. | $10,000 |
MAERDAF Economic Development: 4 Grants = $106,191
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Beach to Bay Heritage Area | $22,911 |
| Building African American Minds, Inc | $44,000 |
| Germantown School Community Heritage Center | $27,280 |
| Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area, Inc. | $12,000 |
MAERDAF Energy: 0 Grants = $0.00
MAERDAF Youth Engagement & Leadership Development: 5 Grants = $105,195
| Awardee | Total Award |
| Alpha Genesis Community Development Corporation | $21,000 |
| Chesapeake Audubon Society-Pickering Creek Audubon Center | $17,700 |
| Harford County 4-H Clubs, Inc | $34,995 |
| The Child and Family Foundation (1 Year to Empowerment) | $6,500 |
| Western Maryland Area Health Education Center (dba AHEC West) | $25,000 |
Rural Maryland Council: Operating Budget – $750,000
| Organization | Funds Utilized |
| Rural Maryland Council |
$750,000 |
Founded in 1994, the Rural Maryland Council (RMC) serves as the state’s federally designated rural development council and functions as a voice for Rural Maryland – advocating, educating, and helping rural communities and businesses across the state to flourish and to gain equity to its suburban and urban counterparts. The Council administers the Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund (RMPIF) and the Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Assistance Fund (MAERDAF) grant programs. Additionally, the Council conducts research activities to understand rural challenges and outreach to engage rural residents in developing solutions to these challenges and convenes groups to identify solutions through consensus and coalition building.
RMC operates under the direction of a 40-member Executive Board in a nonpartisan and nondiscriminatory manner. The Council’s vision is a future where all of Rural Maryland is prosperous with thriving resources, vibrant economies, and healthy, connected communities. The organizational goals are to:
- Encourage healthy, connected communities throughout Rural Maryland through convening stakeholders, education, public relations, and advocacy;
- Support the development and growth of vibrant economies in Rural Maryland;
- Foster stewardship of Maryland’s natural resources; and,
- Maximize outreach, resources, and mission through financial and organizational development.
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