Advance Your Grant Proposal

This session puts an emphasis on idea development, identification of the appropriate granting agency, how to write for reviewers, and strategies of proven value in presenting an applicant’s case to reviewers. Discussion topics include operational and capital campaign strategies, overview of planned giving structures, review of available funding sources and the preparation of a grant proposal.  You will learn both practical and conceptual aspects that are important in the proposal-writing process.

You will learn to:

• Understand the grant writing process
• Recognize the problem statement, project design, goals and objectives, organizational capacity, community partners and outcomes and evaluation
• Prepare professional, competitive, compelling and successful grant proposals
• Be proficient in the proposal format used by the vast majority of public foundations, state and federal agencies
• Formulate collaborative partnership agreements
• Identify the benefits of forming a grant writing team
• Apply research skills to find current, relevant problem statement language
• Understand evaluation and outcomes by use of logic models and evidenced based statistics
• Know when to outsource evaluation to outside evaluation firms and consultants.
• Comprehend complex federal and state budget terminology 

 

The Session Outline

This session features both lecture sessions and group activities. You will participate in several group sessions enabling you to network with others who have similar interests and needs. Class will assemble to identify potential grant-writing partners and grant reviewers from your state and local area. You will discuss relevant grant issues and strategies with other professionals from similar disciplines such as education, mental health, social service, health care, law enforcement, etc.

You will have the opportunity to write a problem statement, compile goals and objectives based on “GIBS” (Goals, Indicators, Benchmarks, and Strategies) and review an actual proposal. Upon completion of the course, you will understand the importance of outcomes and evaluation, and know when it is necessary to hire an outside evaluator.

The following lessons will be covered:

• Introduction and Overview
• Icebreaker and Warm-up
• Training Goals and Learning Objectives
• The Basic Components of a Full Proposal
• The Request For Proposal Process
• Utilizing Evidenced Based Statistics
• Award Winning Problem Statements
• Negotiating Collaborative Partnership Agreements
• Using Logic Models to Develop and Evaluate Program
• The Differences Between Direct/Indirect Costs and In-Kind Contributions
• Creating a Realistic Budget
• What to Include in an Appendix
• Finishing Touches to Your Proposal
• Wrap Up