Making Grant Writing Successful

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Making Grant Writing Successful

• Dara ONeil
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• 26 October 2000

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Which One is You?
or or ?
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Grant Writing!

• Millions of dollars available
• In cash
• In hardware and software donations
• In service donations
• Brownie points
• Flexible spending
• Envy of all your peers

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Wheres the Cash?

• Federal agencies
• U.S. Department of Education
• National Science Foundation
• U.S. Department of Commerce
• Others
• State agencies
• Foundations
• Corporate donations

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Points to Remember

• Stay abreast of your field
• Dont be modest
• Do your homework
• Cite references
• Build on prior success
• Partner
• Start small

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The Grant Writing Process

• Generate project idea
• Find out administrative hoops
• Gather support
• Research funders
• Obtain guidelines
• Call funders
• Draft proposal

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But Wait, Theres More!

• Have outside proposal review
• Revise
• Complete paperwork
• Funders
• Internal
• Submit
• Send copies to stakeholders

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Writing Tips

• Language style
• Concise
• Active and positive
• Use examples
• No jargon or acronyms
• Formatting
• Follow guidelines!!!
• Be professional

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More Writing Tips

• Supporting information
• Dont assume anything
• Show support
• Dont lie -)
• Provide sources of references
• Dont tell them what they already know
• Canned proposals
• Use as appropriate
• Tweak to make sponsor feel special

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Formatting Your Proposal

• Required forms
• Cover letter
• Cover page with catchy title
• Table of contents

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Executive Summary

• One page
• Umbrella statement
• Who you are
• Need statement
• Solution
• Funding requested

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Statement of Need

• Identify your need
• Not a thing
• Ask why and refine
• Bad idea
• Students need Internet access.
• Good idea
• Students need to develop information literacy
  skills.

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Project Description

• What? Why? How? And When?
• Explain goals
• Students will develop information literacy
  skills.
• Describe objectives
• Students will learn search strategies on the
  Internet to find specific information.
• List activities and who is responsible

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Evaluation

• Formative ongoing
• Attitude surveys
• Real-time feedback
• Summative at project end
• Standardized tests
• Portfolio assessments
• Attendance records
• U.S. Dept of Ed guide useful

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Dissemination Plan

• Relatively free
• Websites
• Electronic bulletin boards
• Listservs
• School newsletters
• Budgeted
• Conference presentations
• Publications

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Budget

• Total budget includes
• Requested funds
• In-kind funds
• Matching funds
• Should usually include some in-kind funds from
  school
• Staff time
• Hardware
• Materials and supplies

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Appendices

• Evaluation instruments
• Letters of support (draft for partners)
• Resumes/CVs
• Sources referenced
• School technology plan
• Other info

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Sit Back and Wait!

• If funded
• Send thank-you letter
• Use proposal as model for future proposals
• If unsuccessful
• Welcome to the club! (1 out of 3 is standard)
• Be positive
• Ask for comments
• Revise and resubmit

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Reporting Requirements

• Usually funder will provide specifics
• Generic final report
• Project summary
• Outcomes
• Implementation and lessons learned
• Dissemination
• Future plans
• Project replication

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Concluding Remarks

• Do your homework
• Read the guidelines!
• Complete necessary paperwork
• Internal and external
• Gather support from your community
• Use the Internet
• Look at models
• Were here to help!