From Fumbling to Funding: An Introduction to Grant Writing

1
From Fumbling to Funding An Introduction to
Grant Writing Presented by Beth Trecasa and
Jessica Leary Allen October 21, 2005
2
Introductions

• About this class and about you!

3
Introductions Who we are

• Beth Trecasa, Grants and Fellowships Specialist,
  College of Arts and Sciences
• Jessica Leary Allen, Assistant Director of
  Foundation Development, Central Development

4
Introductions Who you are

• Name
• Department or major
• Two sentences about why you are here
• One sentence about what you want to learn today

5
Refining Your Ideas to Writing

• The one-pager tool for success

6
Our first question for you

• Do you have a one-pager?

7
Questions to ask yourself

• What need does your project fill or what problem
  are you addressing?
• What population will this project serve?
• Is there another group /individual that can you
  partner with?
• How will you measure the success of your
  project?

8
Questions to ask (contd.)

• What is the importance of the project?
• What is the expected impact? What will change?
• Increase, Decrease, Reduce
• What action is necessary for achieving outcome,
  what are your proposing?
• To provide, to establish, to create
• How much will it cost?

9
About Grant-Based Fundraising

• What are grant-making organizations?

10
Foundation The Definition

• A foundation is an entity that is established as
  a nonprofit corporation or a charitable trust,
  with a principal purpose of making grants to
  unrelated organizations or institutions or to
  individuals for scientific, educational,
  cultural, religious, or other charitable
  purposes.
• - The Foundation Center website,
  www.fdncenter.org

11
Types of foundations

• There are three standard types of foundations
• Private
• Public
• Corporate

12
Private foundations

• Typically, most funds come from one source,
  whether an individual, a family, or a
  corporation.
• Example Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation

13
Public foundations

• Typically receives assets from multiple sources,
  which may include private foundations,
  individuals, government agencies, and fees for
  service.
• Example The Cleveland Foundation

14
Corporate Foundations

• Sponsored by specific corporations, corporate
  foundations are private foundations whose assets
  are derived primarily from the contributions of
  the parent company.
• Example Proctor Gamble Fund, Nordson
  Corporation Foundation

15
Federal Funds

• 26 federal grant-making agencies
• Over 900 individual grant programs
• 350 billion in grants each year

16
Federal Program Announcement

• National Institute of Health
• Support for Conferences and Scientific Meetings

17
Take-home lessons

• There is a lot of federal money available
• Plan ahead
• Do it right the first time

18
Fellowships

• Three weeks to five years
• Salary or stipend (partial or full)
• Travel
• Housing
• Collaborative or Independent research

19
Why a fellowship?

• To establish/continue your research career
• To continue with a project you commenced in PhD
  studies
• To pursue new areas of interest

20
Finding Grant Money

• Where is it and how do I find opportunities?

21
Three main sources for finding money

• Paid sources
• Free sources
• Web sources

22
Source 1 - Paid sources

• Include online directories, books, and other
  special search services.
• May have monthly or weekly membership fees.
• May offer additional services with membership
  fee such as technical help, search help, or grant
  writing help.
• You can likely do just as well by utilizing free
  services and reviewing books at the library.

23
Source 1 - Paid sources (examples)

• The Foundation Directory, http//fdncenter.org/ma
  rketplace
• Big Online USA, www.bigdatabase.com
• Books and publications

24
Source 2 - Free sources

• Often can be found at libraries
• Sometimes can be located through the web
• Your best bet asking around!

25
Source 2 - Free sources (examples)

• The Foundation Center Library
• Offers free classes (see www.fdncenter.org)
• Home to library containing countless books and
  electronic resources
• Staff librarian to help you with your search
• And best of all its free

26
Source 3 - Web sources
Getting information off the internet is like
taking a drink from a fire hydrant. - Mitch
Kapor

27
Source 3 - Web sources

• Grant makers websites

28
Web searches

• No website? Not a problem.
• Try this activity
• Google grantmaking
• You will get 1.5 million hits!
• Now try this version
• Google grant making
• 114,000,000 hits

29
Boolean searches

• Boolean Searching
• Asian Studies and conference and grant
• Asian Studies or Japanese Studies and
  conference and grant
• Asian Studies and conference and grant
• not Chinese

30
The 990

• The most-telling resource of them all
• The 990 form

31
Key Terms to Know

• How do I talk the talk?

32
LOI/Statement of Interest

• Letter of Intent/Letter of Interest/Statement of
  Interest
• Many foundations require that one is submitted
  prior to accepting a full proposal
• Typically, it should include
• Introduction
• Description of organization
• Statement of need
• Methodology
• Other funding sources
• Final summary

33
RFP

• Request for Proposal
• An invitation from a funder to submit
  applications on a specified topic with specified
  purposes
• RFP lists can be found via the Foundation
  Centers listserv, on foundation websites, etc.

34
Proposal

• Should provide proof that there is a need for
  your project and that you have the means to meet
  the need
• Foundations will typically specify the length and
  content
• A typical proposal includes
• The organizations qualifications
• Statement of need assessment
• Goals and objectives
• Methodology
• Evaluation
• Future and supplemental funding
• Budget
• Appendices (letters of recommendation, etc.)

35
Stewardship

• responsibility for taking good care of resources
  entrusted to one
• taking responsibility for the survival and
  well-being of something that is valued
• the science, art and skill of responsible and
  accountable management of resources
• ALWAYS be a good steward of your funds and of
  your relationship with your funder!

36
Help on campus

• Are there resources here at Case to help me in
  this process?

37
How can Case help me?

• Central support
• Management center support

38
What can staff do?

• Identify potential funding sources
• Providing sample letters of inquiry, proposals
  and budgets
• Avoid duplication of multiple proposals
• Avoid proposal interruption

39
What can staff do?

• Determine how much to request, how to incorporate
  various costs into the budget
• Coach on funder cultivation, stewardship
• Leverage existing relationships
• Answer your questions!

40
The process at Case

• Misconceptions
• Case is the applicant

41
Commonly requested information

• Authorized staff
• Registration numbers
• Case Characteristics
• Rates

42
Guidelines

• Case Authorship Guidelines
• Case Intellectual Property
• Case Policy on the Custody of Research Data
• Case Sponsored Programs Guidelines
• And more

43
Forms, forms, forms
The University Review Form

44
The process at the College

45
Writing a Grant

• How do I do it?

46
Check for guidelines

• Before you do anything, check to see if the
  grantmaker has pre-determined guidelines for the
  proposal.
• You are looking for the BIG THREE timelines,
  deadlines, and guidelines.
• Always play by the grantmakers rules!

Writing a Grant - JLA
47
Determining your purpose

• What will your project accomplish?
• What will your project do to improve your
  community?
• What are some components of my work that will
  appeal to this funder?
• Where will my project lead in the future?

48
Organizing your thoughts

• Write a clear statement of need.
• Write clear and concise goals and objectives.
• Include your methodology and your plan for
  evaluating your success.
• Consider where else you might receive funding.
• Spend time thinking about your budget.
• Consider who might provide a good reference or
  support for the project and ask that
  person/organization to create a letter of support
  (do this in advance!).

49
Researching your topic

• Learn as much as you can about your
  topic/project/area of study. Be prepared to back
  up your statement of need with cold, hard facts.
• Think about ways your project can work with other
  existing projects in your community. Foundations
  LOVE to see successful partnerships that leverage
  their funds.

50
Writing your grant

• The number one rule Give yourself plenty of time
  to write.
• Set a writing schedule and stick to it.
• Be sure to gather feedback on drafts as you go.
  We suggest using someone to proof for grammar and
  someone to proof for content.

51
Questions and Comments