For Funders & Partners

Partner

The research MAPS would publish, the training it would convene, how the work is funded without compromising independence, the legal structure under review, and where partners come in.

Knowledge Products The workforce data, model policies and standards MAPS would publish — and why Baltimore has no independent baseline today.
Knowledge

Research and knowledge products.

Baltimore has no independent baseline for peer workforce conditions. That verified absence is itself the argument for building these functions rather than waiting for someone else to publish the data.

Workforce Intelligence

State of Baltimore’s Peer Workforce

Annual report on employment settings, certification status, and demographics.

Compensation & Benefits Survey

Local data on wage levels, classification, and access to professional benefits.

Training Supply & Gap Brief

Where the required hours are actually available in Baltimore, what they cost, and which domains have no local provision.

Structural Standards

Model Peer Job Descriptions

Defined scopes of work to prevent role ambiguity and clinical drift.

Model Supervision Standards

Guidelines for recovery-supportive and ethically sound peer supervision.

Employer Training-Support Standard

Model terms for paid release, fee reimbursement and scheduling so certification hours are reachable on an hourly wage.

Strategic Guidance

Lived-Experience Disclosure

Best practices for protecting personal health and recovery information.

Grant-Funded Position Standards

Recommendations for sustainable funding and equitable peer wages.

Baltimore Peer Training Pathway

Co-developed route through the four credential domains, mapped to providers, cost and schedule.

The verified absence of Baltimore workforce baselines is a core driver for establishing these independent knowledge functions.

Funding & Structure How the work is paid for without any single funder shaping it, the legal and fiscal structure under review, and the staging from incorporation to public charity.
Proposed Revenue Mix

Sustainability and funding.

A diversified future revenue mix could support sustainability while protecting independence — no single source large enough to shape a finding.

Philanthropic Support

Foundations and individual major donors focused on workforce development.

Public Funding

Baltimore City and Maryland state workforce and public health grants.

Membership Dues

Tiered professional dues with scholarship and hardship options.

Technical Assistance

Potential earned income from employer education and supervision training.

Research Contracts

Data partnerships for de-identified workforce climate and conditions analysis.

Training & Education

Potential fees for employer-sponsored places and non-credit workforce training.

Proposed model — not established revenue. Categories and the corporate/tax path require counsel and fiscal-sponsor review.

For Sponsor Review

Legal and fiscal structure.

Written for a prospective fiscal sponsor, and kept deliberately plain about what is settled and what is not.

Sponsorship model

Seeking fiscal sponsorship as an interim measure while the IRS determination is pending, so that grants can be received and staff supported before exemption is recognized. MAPS is already incorporated with its own board and bylaws, so the sponsorship model and the division of fiduciary responsibility are being set with Maryland counsel. Candidate sponsor to be confirmed.

Exemption path

Application filed with the IRS for 501(c)(3) public charity status; determination pending. Year One is education, research, and individual assistance — clearly charitable activity. A (c)(6) or (c)(4) affiliate is a later structural option only if the legislative program grows.

Lobbying posture

Any legislative activity is tracked and held within permissible limits under the sponsor’s policy, or excluded entirely during sponsorship. Policy work in Year One is research and education.

Insurance

Directors & officers, general liability, professional / errors & omissions, and cyber coverage to be bound before training sessions begin.

Records & confidentiality

No legal privilege attaches to research participation or training records; they may be subject to subpoena. MAPS will operate a written retention and destruction schedule, disclose these limits to peers plainly, and agree records ownership and transfer terms with the sponsor in advance.

Structure, exemption path, and lobbying treatment subject to Maryland counsel and CPA review.

The Independence Principle

Organizational staging.

01

Maryland Nonstock Nonprofit

Incorporated in Maryland with bylaws adopted and an EIN issued. Complete.

02

501(c)(3) Application

Filed with the IRS for recognition as a public charity. Determination pending.

03

Fiscal Sponsorship

An established 501(c)(3) partner receives grants and supports staff until the determination arrives. Candidate sponsor to be confirmed.

04

Baltimore Pilot Launch

A 6–12 month proof-of-concept and data collection period.

No single organization studied in MAPS research, or named in it, should become financially capable of controlling MAPS.

The First Year What twelve months of Baltimore capacity actually delivers, the proposed targets, and how success is measured rather than asserted.
Roadmap

First year — building Baltimore capacity.

The first year is deliberately sequenced so that nothing is built before the workforce has been asked what it needs.

Months 1–3

Community Discovery

  • Listening sessions and stakeholder/referral mapping
  • Baltimore workforce needs assessment
  • Co-development of a preliminary training pathway
Months 4–6

Build the MVO

  • Research protocols and participant confidentiality standards
  • Secure data handling and a certified training-partner network
  • Workforce conditions survey launch
Months 7–9

Pilot Direct Services

  • First hosted training sessions with certified partners
  • CPRS domain preparation and digital literacy workshops
  • Strategic organizational and employer partnerships
Months 10–12

Publish & Advocate

  • First Baltimore Peer Workforce Conditions Brief
  • Formal policy recommendations and partner convening
  • Multi-year funding and statewide plan
Roadmap

Proposed targets and key deliverables.

25–40
Individual consultations
100+
Survey responses
05
Organizational partnerships
03
Rights trainings

Key deliverables

Peer Training Pathway

Co-developed with Baltimore’s peer workforce during discovery.

Training Gap Map

Where the required hours exist in Baltimore, what they cost, and which domains have none.

Workforce Brief

The first independent picture of Baltimore peer workforce conditions.

Proposed planning targets — not historical results. Final targets validated after discovery, staffing, and partner assessment.

Roadmap

Measuring first-year value.

Four measurement groups, chosen so that success cannot be claimed on activity volume alone — and measured without tracking anyone.

Access & Outreach

  • Peers served and reach across pathways
  • Places offered against places taken up
  • Consent-based referral connections

Training Effectiveness

  • Hours completed toward certification
  • Domain coverage achieved per participant
  • Barriers reported and removed between cohorts

Workforce Engagement

  • Workshop and roundtable participation
  • Connections to certification and support
  • Reported satisfaction, trust and safety

Systems Accountability

  • Recurring systemic patterns identified
  • Model policies drafted and tested
  • Documented changes with agreed safeguards

Proposed year-one measures — not historical results. Baselines to be established after discovery and capacity assessment.

How these are measured, given the site does not track anyone

MAPS runs no analytics, sets no cookies and stores nothing in a visitor’s browser, which is a deliberate trust decision for a workforce whose core risk is being identified. That rules out the usual reach metrics, so the figures above come from four sources that do not require tracking:

  • Counts MAPS holds anyway — places offered and taken, referrals made with consent, sessions delivered, recorded as part of doing the work.
  • Voluntary, de-identified feedback at the close of a training session.
  • Periodic anonymous polls of the workforce, alongside the annual needs assessment.
  • Aggregate server counts for the Resource Hub — totals only, no visitor identity, no path through the site.

This is a real trade-off, stated rather than hidden: MAPS will be able to report what it did and what peers said about it, but not who visited a page or what they read. How we handle information.

Get Involved

The partnership opportunity.

MAPS invites founding funders, legal partners, and peer leaders to invest in the essential support structure that Baltimore’s peer workforce deserves.

Founding Funders

  • Seed capital for the 12-month pilot phase
  • General operating support for capacity
  • Investment in statewide sustainability

Legal & Policy

  • Counsel review of training-partner and data-sharing agreements
  • Guidance on research ethics and participant confidentiality
  • Policy research and legislative alignment

Peer Leaders

  • Steering committee and founding board seats
  • Community discovery and needs assessment
  • Advocacy training and outreach leadership

Institutions

  • Referral network integration and alignment
  • Commitment to the training pathway
  • Employer education and TA collaboration

MAPS is seeking initial commitments for the Year-One Pilot. Categories and scopes are subject to formal agreement and legal review.

Call to Collaborate

Founding partners help shape scope, governance and priorities.

MAPS begins as a coalition, not a finished institution. The people who join now decide what it becomes.

Start a partnership conversation