Transcript Grant Writing 101 - Louisiana State University

Grantwriters’
Training Workshop
June 29-Alexandria
July 1-Baton Rouge
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Sponsors
• Louisiana Association of Science Leaders
• Louisiana Association of Teachers of
Mathematics
• Louisiana Council of Supervisors of
Mathematics
• Louisiana Science Teachers Association
• The Gordon A. Cain Center-LSU
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OBJECTIVES
• Provide a basic overview and review
of the grant-writing process
• Develop a cadre of mentors that
can and will provide assistance to
other educators
• Increase the number and quality of
teacher applications for grants
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Everything You Didn’t
Know To Ask About
Writing a Grant
(and then some)
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Your Job?
To convince a group of
strangers (sight-unseen) to give
you their money to carry out a
program that you believe is
important!
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Remember…….
How successful you are
depends upon your ability to
communicate the need for
and the quality of your
program
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Terminology
• Grant: funds to support a specific
project
• Award: a recognition; may have a
“grant-like” component
• Proposal: a written document (a
request) submitted to an agency to
obtain a grant
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The RFP ……
• The official notice that describes
the guidelines for a grant and
(should) contains everything you
need to know!
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Getting Started
(planning is the key)
• Identify your problem
• Identify an activity, program or
materials needed to solve the
problem
• Prepare the proposal
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Abstract
(the short version of my story)
• May be called the executive summary
• A short, concise summary of your
proposal, usually near the front but the
last thing you write
• May be used for publicity purposes
THIS IS THE “HOOK-UM” part
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Statement of Need
(what is the problem)
• This section should contain the most
forceful language of the proposal
• Use hard-hitting language with an
emotional appeal (bring tears to the
eyes of the reader but don’t make them
throw up!)
• Use documentation to verify the need;
charts, graphs, survey results,
anecdotal information, etc.
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Plan of Operation
(this is how I’ll do it)
> This is the part designed to
convince the reader that you
can carry out the project, ie
you have the “capacity”
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Plan of Operation
>Timelines may be required; be careful
not to box yourself in to a specific date
>Provide an overview of the activities and
strategies that will be a part of the
project(Org chart might work well here)
>Include key personnel, and commitment
from any partners
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Goals and Objectives
• Goal: a broad, clear statement
that describes where you want to
be at the end of the project (often
the goal is not met!)
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Goals and Objectives
• Objective: a measurable result; more
narrowly defined than a goal. The
“good” things you want to see happen as
a result of the project
• Should be specific, measurable, and
attainable during the time frame of the
grant
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Pop Quiz!
To establish a re-cycling program
at our school for aluminum cans
or
To reduce the number of cans on
the school campus by 90% by the
end of the year
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Pop Quiz!
To raise the achievement scores of
identified students by 1 percentile
or
To provide an after-school reading
program
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Commitments
(May I have that in writing?)
 Key partners should provide a letter of
commitment on letter head, specifically
stating what they will contribute
 “this is a wonderful project” or “you
are the greatest” type letters are
usually not of any real value for a grant
(but may be appropriate for an award)
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Vita
(I’m so fine!)
• Check for page limit in the RFP
• Only include information relative to the
project; don’t get bogged down in trivia
• Arrange in a readable format
• Don’t go back too far in time
• ALWAYS BE HONEST!
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Evaluation Plan
(did it work......did I do what I said
I would do?)
 Did it work the way you hoped it
would?
Were there any unexpected
results that would help in the
future?
What elements were successful
and which were not?
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Evaluation Plan
Process (formative) Provide feedback
along the way so changes can be made;
usually qualitative.
Product (summative) At the end; Were
objectives met? Was new knowledge
gained? Was it cost effective? Usually
quantitative.
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Budget
(show me the money)
Regardless of the amount of
funding requested, you need a
detailed budget and sometimes a
budget narrative.
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Budget
• Don’t be too thrifty and jeopardize your
project. It’s a balancing act!
• Pad your budget
• Don’t pad your budget
• Be realistic and justify every expense!
• Check figures over and over!
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Budget Narrative
(why I need the money!)
A category by category
justification of costs;
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Appendixes &
Attachments
This section is normally at the end;
Contains letters of support, vita
and other documentation
May or may not have a page limit so
always check RFP to be sure
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Writing for the Reader
(what they see is what you get)
• Make it as easy as possible for
the reader to follow what you
are saying
• Don’t get bogged down in local
terminology (does someone in
Denver know what LaSIP,
LINCS, and LATM represent?)
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The Actual Writing
Process
(time to cut bait or fish)
 Establish a game plan and timeline
for completion,even if it breaks
down.
 Allow time for someone away from
the project to read and comment.
 Decide how you will deliver the
proposal. Get a receipt!
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Lagniappe
(things I have learned…)
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Repeat certain “key” words and phrases
Use the “hook”; the “WOW”
Watch for the politically incorrect term
Know the priorities of the funder
Write in the first person for awards;
for grants use “the project director” or
“the applicant”
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Common Mistakes
(why I did not get the grant)
• Not following directions! (hard
to believe, but true!)
• Missing the application date
• Not providing all required
information
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Teacher Award Projects
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Teacher of the Year
Presidential Award for Excellence
NSTA Awards
NCTM Awards
Tandy Scholars
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