Hi! I’m Kate Martin, the Grants Manager at Dr. Phillips Charities! Welcome to our blog “The Juicy Details”! We’ve started this blog with you in mind – and by you, I mean grant writers, nonprofit organizations seeking grant funding, or anyone who is curious about grant writing.
We’ll talk about good grant writing, share resources, and of course talk about what Dr. Phillips Charities wants to see when we receive Letters of Intent and Grant Proposals. Want to know the Juicy Details? Read below!
Gathering the Grant Goodies!
In the spirit of Halloween, I couldn’t help but think about how kids eagerly return home and dump out their stash of Halloween Candy, weeding through it to get all the “best candy.” In turn, that makes me think of gathering all the good information together for grant writing!
What is it exactly to get us to that oh so sweet morsel of grant making goodies? The right questions to answer in our writing prep. I had a lovely, yet brutal English teacher in high school, who probably would have been an amazing grant writer. Mrs. D. would write things on my papers like “why do I care?” “How do you know?” “Does this add up?” She called it “Getting Down to the Nitty Gritty.” These questions are much like those we want to answer in writing our grant proposals. The answers to the questions below are the ultimate in Grant Goodies!
What is the purpose of your project/program?
Tell us what problem your project or program is trying to address, who it will serve, what your goal is and how you plan to make this happen. And don’t forget – why it is important to improve or fix that problem?! Collect information about:
- What do you plan to accomplish?
- Why do you want to do this?
- How are you going to do it?
- How will you assess the success of the project?
- Why is this important?
- How much will it cost to do this?
Why does the Funder Care?
Different Funders have different areas they support and reasons they want to solve a problem. How does what your organization wants to accomplish intersect with the funder’s mission? Without a clear connection between the need and the grant maker’s funding priorities, there is no sweet spot.
- Does your program or project solve a problem the funder is passionate about?
- Do you help people/groups that the funder cares about?
- What makes the project innovative?
Why You and Not Someone Else?
In talking about your project, funders need to know if this program is really a good fit for your organization as well as for them. Funders look for the answers to:
- Does this align with your mission and/or vision statement? Your strategic plan?
- Do you have the right people in place to succeed? (Directors, staff, project leaders)
- Are you going it alone or are you working with others to make an even bigger impact (partners)?
- Have you thought this through? (Show me the details!)
- What strengths and opportunities will exist after your program?
- Any community weaknesses if your project doesn’t move forward?
Does this add up?
Next, we need to know whether your story adds up – both story wise and financially.
- Why/what proof do you have that your way is the right way to address the problem?
- How long will it take to set up and follow through with the program to get your proposed results?
- Does your project budget detail how the funds requested will be used?
- Who else is funding you, including grants received and those you have applied for?
- Are you a good “financial risk” to take with the grant maker’s funding?
“Starter” Checklist
When you set out to answer all these questions, it helps to create a check list of what specific information you need. Here’s a little treat I like to use as my “starter” list to get the good information…
- Details about the operation of the program or project
- Mission and Vision statements
- List of organization directors, staff, and project leaders (and where appropriate, qualifications)
- List of any organizations partnering with, and roles of each
- Information about goals and the things you need to see to determine the project as a success
- What methods you will use to collect information and analyze the data to measure your outcomes
- Statistics on the numbers who will be served, or other details related to the program
- Project timelines, as appropriate
- Project budget detailing how requested funds will be used
- List of current funding sources, including grants already received, those applied for (and anticipated dates for answers)
- Current year’s operating budget
- Most recent 990 tax return and audited financial statements
- Proof of nonprofit 501(c)(3) status
Gathering all this information at the outset will help your writing process be as sweet as, well, Halloween Candy!
Pauline’s Proposal Pointers
If you have worked with Dr. Phillips Charities previously, you most likely have met Pauline. For the past 30+ years, she has supported the head of the grants department and knows quite a lot about Dr. Phillips Charities’ grantmaking! From time to time, The Juicy Details will share some of this knowledge with you!
Today’s Proposal Pointer is It’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission – Not!
It’s always better to ask a question upfront rather than asking for forgiveness later because you didn’t. Selecting an inaccurate Program Area or Type of Support when submitting a Letter of Intent does not earn you any brownie points . . . and in some instances it not only wastes your time and our time, but it also does nothing to strengthen the relationship between our two organizations.
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