|
June 15, 2002
Get That Grant: Before and After Pointers
By Gwen Solomon
Writing a grant proposal is a work-intensive, time-consuming process. Here are some tips for getting the most out of your effort.
Editor's note: Our annual Grants Directory 50 grant listings-with an additional 150-plus at the TechLearning Grants DB. But it takes more than just knowing where to look to turn the dream of funds into reality. To help you get started, we're reprinting here a portion of Gwen Solomon's Maggie Award-winning how-to article, "Deconstructing a Grant," from A Guide for School Technology Leaders 2001.
Things to Do Before You Write
Have a solid idea and enough supporting details. Remember: honorable but vague intentions are not enough.
Read the grant guidelines carefully-is this the right grant to meet your needs, or are you bending either your idea or what the grant is asking for to fit?
Build commitment to the idea. Those involved should meet, discuss, plan, and agree to contribute not only to the project but also to the grant-writing process, and agree to carry out the plan if successful.
Evaluate the amount of funding. Make sure that the amount of money in the grant is sufficient for your needs. What staff and equipment will you need? Will this grant cover it? What other sources can you tap?
Determine your ability to carry out the plan and the commitment of your supervisors and the community.
Get outside funders (local community, matching funds) on board and enthusiastic about the ideas.
Read the directions carefully and follow advice from the experts on how to write proposals.
Set deadlines for your team to write their sections, complete the work, get signatures, and make the copies you need to send so you'll be ahead of schedule; and build in a buffer in case things take longer than expected.
After You Win the Grant
Be ready to hit the ground running should you win. Have your plans in place so you won't lose valuable time. Encourage staff to continue planning so they'll be ready, willing, and able to start immediately if and when the funding does come through.
Follow the plan. Do what you've said you want to do. Spend on budget items exactly. Measure what you've said you'll test. Send reports on time.
Understand roles. Make sure that everyone involved understands the project thoroughly and knows exactly what his/her role is in it.
Recognize personnel for their work; thank them publicly. Talk about how well the project is working.
Keep the support strong. Maintain enthusiasm for the project throughout its life. When people hear that a project is going well, it motivates those running the project, and convinces everyone that they have a great thing.
Sustain it. Make the program a regular part of the school's or district's program. Find ways to sustain it over time, even after the funding period ends.
Evaluate the outcomes early and often. Make small changes when they're needed-and before they adversely affect the success of your project.
If You Don't Get the Grant
Contact the funder and ask to read the reviewers' comments about your proposal (if the grant program provides them) so you'll know how close you were to winning and what you might want to change for future tries.
Read the summaries of projects that did win and analyze why they won.
Submit it again. If you think the plan has merit, propose it again. Maybe the proposal just needs tweaking to succeed. Don't lose heart or give up easily.
Adapt the proposal to fit another grant or even hire a professional grant writer to help you adapt it.
Start the project anyway. If the idea is important and the staff is committed, begin whatever parts you can without the outside funding. Maybe the groups that said they'd contribute funds will help you anyway.
Find a new idea. It's possible that no one is funding exactly the kind of thing you want to do right now, but there's probably an alternative course you could take.
Gwen Solomon is director of TechLearning.com.
Read other articles from the May Issue
Send a letter to the Editor in response to this article.
|
