Grant Writer’s Blog

Taking Grant Writing from DIY to DI WHY (S2, E1)

in Fundraising HayDay Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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With Requests for Proposals (RFPs) aka Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) often running between 40 and 100 pages of detailed instructions grant writing seems like endless sets of assembly instructions for IKEA furniture on steroids—minus the allen wrenches of course.     The DIY (do it yourself) nature of grant writing comes from following the often-complex instructions, assembling the many required attachments such as logic models,…

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Shark Week Revisited: Anatomy of a Funded 21st CCLC Grant

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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My grandson was finally old enough this year to be as excited about Shark Week as much as I am. I love learning about sharks as much as I love being a grant peer reviewer. I served as a peer reviewer for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) grant, a program I’ve written many proposals for in the past. This federal program funds extracurricular…

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What To Look For (And What To Avoid) In Grant Writing Training For Nonprofit Organizations

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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Originally posted by CharityHowTo July 10, 2019. Read the original blog here.  When talking with nonprofit professionals who are new to the grant writing field, or even those who may not be new to the field, but are focused on taking their grant writing career to the next level, one of the most common questions I am asked is about what key resources and trainings…

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Grant Funding in Action: USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program

in Grant Funding in Action (#grantswork) Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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Here are three varieties of a fruit or vegetable: Belle of Georgia, Desert Gold, and Empress. Do you know what fruit or vegetable this is? If you guessed peaches, you are correct. I have enjoyed some tasty peaches this summer. Last year was the first time I wrote a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) grant. I also handled…

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Top 10 Grant Writing Tips For Your Nonprofit

in Grant Consulting Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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*Originally published on 6/14/19 by CharityHowTo.  There are so many nuances to be considered when creating a successful grant seeking strategy. Whether you are relatively new to the field of grant seeking or you are looking to increase your success percentage and craft more competitive grant applications, there are always tips related to the best practices of grant seeking that can help hone the way…

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Reflections: Serving on a Community Foundation Grant Review Panel

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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Explain how you will transform lives, but remember… we will not fund staff. Nonprofit Haiku by Rosie Oldham   This fabulous poem from Vu Le’s blog at Nonprofit AF illustrates some of the frustrations in nonprofit and grant work. It reminds me of a wonderful experience I had this year reviewing grant proposals for a local community foundation I admire because of their diversity, open-mindedness,…

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Questions to Help You Think Like a Grant Reviewer

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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This month I served as a grant reviewer for the first time. I had three foundation applications to review in six weeks (a pretty generous time-frame). I will join in the chorus of other grant professionals that say if you have the opportunity to serve as a reviewer, do it. Here are the 10 Tips Judy learned by serving as a federal grant reviewer.  …

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#FOMO…On the Perfect Grant Opportunity

in Grant Consulting Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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While many on social media may think of #FOMO as the Fear Of Missing Out as it relates to social activities, vacations, and other exciting adventures, when I think of #FOMO it is the fear that many grant professionals deal with…missing out on a perfect grant opportunity.   Yes, I occasionally have a middle of the night moment of panic that I missed the opening…

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Grant MythBusters

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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The popular television show, MythBusters, began on the Discovery channel in 2003. Like this tv show which fact checks and dispels or proves urban legends, the world of grants is ripe with myths. Time for Spring Cleaning! Let’s bust three of these grant myths!   Myth #1: Grant funding should only support program costs. Vu Le, Executive Director of Ranier Valley Corps, has a reply…

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The National Funder Unicorn

in Grant Writing Tips and Best Practices on Share
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Anyone doing grant research for an organization has probably heard this at least once when discussing research results: “Aren’t there any national funders?”   In my experience doing a lot of grant research, most grantmakers have geographic preferences. They give priority, or may exclusively fund, certain geographic areas. This could include the places where their founders or trustees live(d), or communities with company facilities in…

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