The strength of our community depends upon participation by all residents in Baltimores economic, social, political and cultural arenas. Therefore, BCF seeks to advance the ideals of a welcoming environment, open access and civic engagementwith all of its privileges and responsibilitiesin every area of community life.

The goal of the Diversity Path is to ensure that the future leadership of Baltimore reflects the richly diverse makeup of our city and region. The focus begins with African Americans but will readily expand to include other communities.

BCFs Diversity Path focuses grants on:

• Providing opportunities for African American children and youth to excel in academically challenging high schools;
• Ensuring that African American young adults enter the workforce confident that engaging and fulfilling careers are open and available to them;
• Securing multiple options for career advancement for African American middle level managers;
• Assuring access to major positions of leadership in business, government, education, and non-profit sectors for seasoned African American professionals.

BCF invites all who share our vision for this region to join us and Invest in Baltimore. We believe that no one path leads to our common goal, but that by investing strategically in many paths we can create a Baltimore with a growing economy in which all have the opportunity to thrive. BCFs grantmaking is built around these nine paths, one of which is Diversity.