Transcript Putting Yourself in the Shoes of a Reviewer: The Do’s and

Putting Yourself in the Shoes of a
Reviewer: The Do’s and Don’ts of
Grant Writing
NOVEMBER 3, 2012
LECHELLE WARDELL, MPH
CONSULTANT
[email protected]
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Meet Deadlines
 Don’t Be Late!!!
 Follow Directions Provided in Request for
Applications/Proposals (RFA/RFP)
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Complete Checklist
Format
Page/Section Limits
Complete All Forms
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Include All Requested Attachments, Sections and
Forms
 Obtain All Necessary Signatures
 Make Grant Visually Appealing
 Make Grant Easy to Read
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Develop Strong Goals and Objectives
 Realistic
 Measurable
 Timeline for accomplishing
Goals
 A statement of the planned outcome that will solve
the problem addressed in the needs statement.
(Fredalene B. Bowers, Ph.D., Asst. Professor,
Indiana University of Pennsylvania)
 i.e. The goal of this program is to increase the
number of Latino women seeking and receiving
screening mammograms.
Objectives
 A Statement of Intent to Perform Predetermined
Activities
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Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Timely
 Should be Written with Action Verbs
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To increase
To improve
To identify
Objectives
 Beginning July 1, a minimum of two home visits per
month will be provided to 30 African American
women of childbearing age in the targeted areas.
 To identify four new residential communities with a
large Latino population (>50% of residents) by
March 15.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Develop an Evaluation Plan
 Proofread, Proofread, Proofread!
 Don’t Have ANY Typos
 Write Proposal in 3rd Person
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Assemble a Proposal Writing Team
 Gather relevant data and information
 Give ideas for proposal content
 Write sections of proposal
 Select One KEY Proposal Writer
 Proposal should have one voice
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Include Community Input
 Don’t Use Acronyms Or Abbreviations
 Include Strong Letters Of Support Or Memorandums
Of Agreement
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All letters should not be alike
Letters should state commitment to program
Letters should be on letterhead and signed
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Avoid Jargon, Complicated Expressions Or Run-on
Sentences
 Consider Placing Charts And Grafts In Appendix
 Start Early
 Develop A Checklist
The Do’s and Don’ts of Grant Writing
 Include A Budget With A Strong Budget Justification
 Budget Should Directly Relate To Program Activities
 Budget Should Reflect True Costs Of Program
Activities
Basic Proposal Components
 Summary ~ Clearly and concisely summarizes the
request
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Appears at the beginning of the proposal
Identifies grant applicant
Includes at least one sentence on problem
Includes at least one sentence on credibility
Includes at least one sentence on objectives
Includes at least one sentence on methods
Includes total cost, funds already obtained and amount
requested
Basic Proposal Components
 Introduction ~ Describes the applicant agency and
its qualifications for funding (credibility)
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Clearly establishes who is applying for funds
Describes applicant agency purposes and goals
Describes applicant’s programs and activities
Describes applicant’s clients or constituents
Provides evidence of the applicant’s accomplishments
Offers statistics in support of accomplishments
Leads logically to the problem statement
Is as brief as possible
Is interesting
Basic Proposal Components
 Problem Statement or Needs Assessment
 Relates to purposes and goals of applicant agency
 Is of reasonable dimensions
 Is supported by statistical evidence
 Is supported by statements from authorities
 Is stated in terms of clients’ needs and problems, not the
applicant’s
 Is developed with input from the clients and beneficiaries
 Makes no unsupported assumptions
 Is interesting to read
 Is as brief as possible
 Makes a compelling case
Basic Proposal Components
 Program Objectives ~ Describes the outcomes of the
grant in measurable terms
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At least one objective for each problem or need committed to
in problem statement
Objectives are outcomes
Objectives are not methods
Describes the population that will benefit
States the time by which objectives will be accomplished
Objectives are SMART
Basic Proposal Components
 Methods ~ Describes the activities to be conducted
to achieve the desired objectives
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Flows naturally from problems and objectives
Clearly describes program activities
States reasons for the selection of activities
Describes sequence of activities
Describes staffing of program
Describes clients and client selection
Presents a reasonable scope of activities that can be conducted
within the time and resources of the program
Basic Proposal Components
 Evaluation ~ Presents a plan for determining the degree
to which objectives are met and methods are followed
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Presents a plan for evaluating accomplishment of objectives
Presents a plan for evaluating and modifying methods over the
course of the program
Tells who will be doing the evaluation and how they were chosen
Clearly states criteria of success
Describes how data will be gathered
Explains any test instruments or questionnaires to be used
Describes the process of data analysis
Describes any evaluation reports to be produced
Basic Proposal Components
 Future Funding ~ Describes a plan for continuation
beyond the grand and/or the availability of other
resources necessary to implement the grant.
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Presents a specific plan to obtain future funding if program is
to be continued
Describes how maintenance and future program costs will be
obtained
Describes how other funds will be obtained, if necessary to
implement the grant
Has minimal reliance of future grant support
Is accompanied by letters of commitment, if necesssary
Basic Proposal Components
 Budget ~ Clearly delineates costs to be met by the funding
source and those provided by other parties
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Tells the same story as the proposal narrative
Is detailed in all aspects
Projects costs that will be incurred at the time of the program, if
different from the time of proposal writing
Contains no unexplained amounts for miscellaneous
Includes all items asked of the funding source
Includes all items paid for by other sources
Includes all volunteers
Details fringe benefits, separate from salaries
Includes all consultants
Separately details all non-personnel costs
Includes indirect costs where appropriate
Is sufficient to perform the tasks described in the narrative
Identifying Resources – Community Level
 Faith-Based Organizations
 Community Volunteers
 Non-Profit Organizations
 Civic Organizations
 Local Government
 Schools
 Colleges and Universities
 Grants
 Educational Resources
 Technical Assistance
 Research Opportunities
Identifying Resources – State Level
 State Government
 Grants
 Educational Resources
 Technical Assistance
 Grant Making Organizations (Fundsnetservices.com)
 Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust
 A. J. Fletcher Foundation
 A.E. Finley Foundation
 Golden Leaf Foundation
 Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation
Identifying Resources – Federal/National Level
 Federal Government
 Grants (Grants.gov)
 Educational Resources
 Technical Assistance
 National Grant Making Organizations