grant writing 101
DESCRIPTION
Grants 101 by Nicole Plegge delivered at National Association of Vision Professionals Conference 2012TRANSCRIPT
Grant Writing 101
Grants and Granters
A grant is a financial award given by a
foundation or other entity to a recipient to carry
out a program or project to benefit greater good. Government Family/trusts Corporate Community
State of Foundations
93,000 foundations in the U.S. 59% are family-run and account for 7% of
total foundation giving Giving was up 1.8% in 2011 - $41.67 billion 14% of all giving
- Giving USA
Grant Pros
Once a recipient, often a recipient again Once you have a system in place, can be
adjusted for multiple grants One of the biggest sources of funding for
nonprofits Great ROI in comparison to other
fundraising
strategies
Grant Cons
Extremely competitive Lengthy period of time until rewarded Majority of granters want pilot programs Not enough money to go around
How to Find Foundations
Two Important Resources
Local corporation and community websites Companies in your area of expertise
Grant Writing is Like Dating
Research Like You’re Prepping for a Date
Former grantees
Grant interests
Who Can Be Your Wingman?
Corporate funders want some kind of
employee connection Volunteer Board member Someone who has been helped
What Does the GranterExpect on the Date?
Timelines Guidelines Application directions Additional information
How They Want to be Wooed
What If There’s Not a PerfectMatch?
Tailor your idea to an RFP carefully Ex. Show benefits from an educational standpoint as opposed to blindness prevention
Don’t waste your time – or your granter’s
time if no appropriate fit Restructuring your program to meet a
funder’s needs can hurt in the long run
Your Proposal
The Pieces of Your Proposal
Cover letter Summary/abstract Needs assessment Program/project description Budget Evaluation Sustainability Supporting materials
Summary/Abstract
Elevator speech Main highlights of your program, the issue
to be resolved, and your end goals Brief mention of funding request The woo-hoo factor
Needs Assessment
Outlines the issue, why it exists and why it
hasn’t been solved. Community analysis Target analysis Gaps in service Statistics
Put a face to the program
Program/Project Description
Outlines your plan of action to solve the problem Expected outcomes
Good/Bad Outcome Examples
Bad: 1,000 youth between the ages of 12 & 16
will have participated in a 6-week education
program on violence prevention (this is actually
an output)
Good: 1,000 youth between the ages of 12 & 16
will increase their knowledge by 40% in conflict
resolution & anger management by June 30, 2012
- Fundamentals of Grant Writing, TICUA.org
Program/Project DescriptionCont.
Goals – qualitative, abstract, long-term Are they SMART?
Objectives – quantitative, measurable,
specific, short-term Activities to put your plan into action
Evaluation
How the results will be measured Evaluation methods
Sustainability
How will the program continued beyond the
funding period?
Supporting Materials
Letters of support (if applicable) IRS letter 990’s Financial audits Board list
Why Grants Fail
Not enough money to go around Program not right at this time Exaggerated results Complicated or jargon-filled application Lack of alignment with granter’s interests Guidelines not followed Unrealistic budget or cost greater than goal
Set Yourself Apart
Pull at the Heartstrings
Collaboration
Partnership
Build relationship with granter Volunteer opportunities Keep them informed of developments Ask for feedback
Spread the Word
Thank you letters Press releases Social media Announcements in marketing materials
Stay on Top of Grants
Keep a calendar Running files of grants Supplement file Grant Friday
The Results
40% of grant writers have a 75% success rate
30% have a 51-75% success rate
- Research Associates
Questions?