Grant Writing 101

Office of School Support

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Agenda

• What is a grant?

• Who gives grants and why?

• What is a fundable idea, project and proposal?

• Basic grant lexicon

• Keys to success

• Searching for funding

• Evaluating funding opportunities

• Parts of a proposal

• Sources for finding grant opportunities

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What is a Grant

An award of funds, services or materials given from one organization to another.

A grant is used to supplement, not supplant

A grant is for something new

Grants are project-specific

Should be based on needs, not wants

A Grant is an Agreement

A grant is an award or gift, with strings attached.

It is like a contract between a grantor and a grantee.

Once the grant is offered, and the grantee accepts it, the grantee must follow through on the promises made in the proposal.

Integrity and reputation of the school, program, and department must be maintained as activities are carried out utilizing grant funds.

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Basic Grant Lexicon

• Grant – $ (or materials or services)

• Proposal/application – what you write

• Project – what you propose to do

• Program – the grantor’s intention to fund

• Grant period or project period - the term of the

grant: from X to X date.

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Where Does That Money Come From

There are two sources of grants:

1) Public

Public funding comes from federal and state monies – our tax dollars.

2) Private

Private funding comes from foundations and individuals – private and corporate wealth.

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Public Grants

• Are responsive to legislation

• Have formal application procedures.

• Are usually projects of great scope and impact.

• Have long, detailed proposals

• Include detailed reports on project outcomes

• Often require scientifically-based research

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Private Grants

• Are responsive to objectives and initiatives defined by corporations

• Have a variety of application procedures and proposal

lengths

• Range from small to large

• Relationship building is significant and plays a major role

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What is a Fundable Idea

• Meets the grantor’s goals and guidelines and the applicant’s goals and mission

• Addresses a critical, important, urgent need or problem that adversely affects a specific population

Note: Don’t waste your time or the potential grantor’s time trying to pound a square peg into a round hole. It will not work and is discourteous to the grantor.

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What is a Fundable Project

A fundable project is a practical solution that can be implemented within the grant period.

Grants are project-based, so you need to turn your idea into a distinct project, with a beginning and an end.

Your project should make a measurable difference within the grant period.

It should have some benefit beyond the grant period;

It should have a long-term impact and be sustainable.

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Contents of a Fundable Proposal

Should identify a target population with a critical need

Should be specific and have measurable objectives

Should have detailed activities and timeline

Should have methods to accurately measure impact

Should have an accurate, realistic and detailed budget

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Three Keys to Winning Grants

• Choosing the right funding opportunity

• Following directions

• Allowing enough time

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You Can Do It!

You already know how to do these things in other contexts:

Your ability to plan and schedule effectively

Your ability to follow directions and to recognize when an opportunity is appropriate.

You just need to see how these skills apply to grant writing.

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Searching for Funding

There are two ways to look for funding. You can start by:

(1) finding out what grants are available or

(2) you can start with a project idea in mind.

It wise to do some of both. You have to know what kind of funding you’re looking for, so you have to have a need or idea first. But you probably want to know what grants are available before you get too deeply involved in project development.

Remember: you have to make the match between your project and the grantors goals, so you will almost always have to shape your project in some way to conform to the funding opportunity.

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If you find an interesting grant, check out the RFP!

The RFP will tell you:

The purpose of program

The eligibility requirements

The deadline

The amount and duration of award

The allowable activities, expenditures

The narrative requirements

The selection criteria

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Ask yourself these key questions:

Are we eligible?

What is the grantors focus areas?

Does our project meet their program criteria?

Does it meet their funding guidelines?

Does our mission complement theirs?

Have they given grants for similar projects to organizations like ours?

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More key questions

o What is the maximum award? Is that enough money for us? Is it too much? If it’s too much, what would that tell you? Your project is probably too small scale; they want something broader.

o If it’s not enough, can you scale your project back, maybe start with a small pilot? Starting small is wise: it can lead to bigger things.

o Can we meet the deadline? Do we have enough time to develop a viable project and a high-quality proposal?

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Follow the RFP

The RFP will have narrative requirements: what topics to address and questions to answer in your narrative. You will have to describe who your target audience is; what their need or problem is; your project’s goals, objectives, activities; how you will manage your project; and how you will evaluate it.

The RFP’s narrative requirements ask for all of those things and tell you the order in which to present the information. Follow the directions.

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Details, details, details!

Be careful about line spacing, font size, margin width, page limit, mailing instructions, number of copies to submit – every detail. They’re deadly serious. The first thing they do is weed out applicants that didn’t follow directions. Two reasons:

(1) If you can’t follow directions, they’re not going to trust you with their money.

(2)Grantors want the process to be fair.

The selection criteria will tell you how proposals will be judged and how many points each proposal section is worth.

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Before deciding to Apply

Thoroughly and carefully read everything you can find about the grant opportunity

Get your principal’s or supervisor’s approval

Send a letter of intent to the grantor if required.

Identify sources of data that could be used to bolster your proposal – state test scores, student demographics, community partnerships, census data, etc.

Review, revise and edit your proposal.

Identify the submission deadline and do not wait to the last minute to upload an online proposal.

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Sources for Grant Funding OpportunitiesNew York City Department of Education:

Principals’ Portal: Timely Opportunities and Grant Writing Tutorial http://intranet.nycboe.net/DOEPortal/Principals/SchoolSupp

ort/AcademicServices/Grants/TimelyOpportunities/default.htm

The Foundation Centerhttp://foundationcenter.org

School Community Partnerships: Alumni Parents Community-based Organizations Local Businesses City Council/Elected Officials Colleges/Universities

School-Community Partnerships

Definition:

The connections between schools and community individuals, organizations, and businesses that are targeted to directly or indirectly promote students’ social, emotional, physical and intellectual development.

Community, within this definition of school-community partnership is not constrained by the geographic boundaries of neighborhoods, but refers more to the “social interactions that occur within or transcend local boundaries.” (Nettles, 1991).

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Example of School-Community Partnership Activities Adapted from Sanders, M.G. (2001)

Student Centered Family Centered School Centered Community Centered

Student awards, students incentives, scholarships, student trips, tutors, mentors, job shadowing and other services and products for students

Parent workshops, family fun-nights, GED, and other adult ed classes, parent incentives and rewards, counseling, and other forms of assistance to parents

Equipment and materials, beautification and repair, teacher incentives and awards, funds for schools events and programs, office and classroom assistance, and other school improvement

Community beautification, student exhibits and performances, charity and other outreach

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Examples of Community Partners

Community Partners Examples

Businesses and Corporations

Local business, national corporations and franchises

Universities and Educational Institutions

Colleges and universities, community colleges, high schools, and other educational institutions

Health Care Organizations

Hospitals, health care, mental health facilities, health departments and associations

Government and Military Agencies

Fire department, police departments, chambers of commerce, city councils and other local, state and federal agencies.

National Service and Volunteer Organizations

Rotary Club, Lions Club, Kiwanis, Girls Scouts, YMCA, and other associations

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Examples of Community Partners

Community Partners Examples

Faith Based Organizations Churches, mosques, synagogues and other religious organizations

Senior Citizen Organizations

Nursing homes and senior volunteer

Cultural and Recreational Institutions

Zoos, museums, libraries and recreations centers

Media Organizations Local newspapers, radio stations, cable networks, including foreign language outlets and other media

Sports Franchises and Associations

Major and minor league teams, NBA, NCAA and other sports-related groups

Other Community Organizations

Foundations, neighborhood associations, and political, alumni and local service organizations.

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Discussion – Success Stories

• A successful collaboration with a community partner was…

• An excellent way that volunteers helped a school was…

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