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The Secret to Writing Successful Grant Proposals

By Chris WhiteheadTSYS Department of Computer Science

Columbus State University

Fall 2005

Preface

The Grant Institute http://thegrantinstitute.com info@thegrantinstitute.com (888) 824-4424

Overview

Types of grants and sources of funding The most important components of any grant proposal Why projects get funded and why proposals fail The grant proposal development process Grant proposal resources How to build a grant proposal team The 10 most common elements of a winning proposal and

how to improve your chances of getting funded Specifics in writing the grant proposal What to do when your grant proposal gets funded What to do when your grant proposal doesn’t get funded

Common Type of Grants

General purpose or operating support grants

Program or project support grants Planning grants Seed money or start-up grants Management or technical assistance grants Facilities and equipment grants Endowment grants Program-related investments (PRIs) (loans)

Sources of Funding

Federal Foundations (in Georgia) Corporate Individual

Important Components

Expertise Put this expertise into a need Build a strategic plan

Of institution Research agenda

Focus Politics

Pieces of the Grant Proposal Puzzle

Institutional description Need Plan of operation Goal Objectives Activities/methodology Key Personnel Cost/budget Dissemination of results Sustainability

The Five Ws

Who am I? (the organization/institute I represent)

What is my project? Why do I need the money? When do I need the money? Who will benefit? Who will implement the project? Where will the funds be directed? What is my evaluation plan?

Why Projects get Funded

Social value Economic value Project is a model Powerful partners Statistical evidence Specific about a need Highly credible researchers or requesters

Why Grant Proposals Fail

Technical issues – 25% Misspelled words or grammatical errors Contact the program officer

Grant Proposal Development Process

Research sources Obtain announcement Form team Develop need, goals & objectives Write first draft proposal Proofread Team meeting Write revision Submit proposal

Resources

Federal Register (periodical) Grants.gov Foundation Center (http://www.fdncenter.org) Chronicle of Higher Education Chronicle of Philanthropy Community of Science Grant Training Center Titlewave.com Grantsmart.org American Council of Learned Societies (http://acls.org) Idealist.org National Institutes of Health (grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm) National Science Foundation (www.nsf.gov) Fundraising in an Electronic Age (book)

Where to Find Personal Donors

Look in society page of newspaper Don’t approach individual donors or

foundations without going through university first

Building the Team

Stakeholders Content people - experts Partners Budget officer Supervisor Evaluators Editor

10 Common Elements of a Winning Proposal

1. Clearly defines needs2. Clearly describes what will be done3. Presents the material in a logical manner4. Written in positive terms5. Does not overuse jargon6. Presents detailed budgets that match the

proposed program7. Gives something back8. Follows all the guidelines in the RFP9. Professional looking10.Not too short or long

Elements of a Successful Research Proposal

Clearly written Objectives stated clearly Presents a clear plan for carrying out research Spells out specifically and clearly the methodology

and resources Specifies innovation States the following:

This is what I will do This is how I will do it This is what I have done This is what is being done now

Improving Your Chances of Success

Avoid the I am famous; therefore I will get the grant syndrome

Never complain about lack of resources Set realistic timelines Let colleagues review the grant before

submitting it Remember that the review process is not

blind Resubmit grant if not funded the first time for

persistence pays off

Improving Your Chances of Success (cont)

To improve funding chances remember to: Pick a good topic Be explicit in design and focus on quality Speak directly to the issue Add a senior collaborator as co-PI/consultant Talk to program officer in advance Carefully use reviews to revise submissions Work on something you are excited about

Improving Your Chances of Success (cont)

Get other people to read the proposal Become a reader Have a variety of people on the grant team Don’t be self-serving—serve the

community Write a succinct question or problem

statement

Institutional Description

Paraphrase mission statement Macro then micro Talk about strengths Incorporate the organization’s strategic plan Do a needs assessment to validate the need Gear the description towards the need without

specifying the need How does the project or research fit in? Partnerships always get more attention

Needs Statement

Tell the story in a compelling, convincing, clear and specific manner

Answer the following questions: What is the problem of my project? What is missing in solving the problem? What does it take to solve the problem?

It’s not about the money – it’s about the program Provide evidence

Surveys Case studies Maps Statistical data Models

Needs Statement (cont)

For a research project, needs should be based on literature review

When you put in the proposal, remember that you won’t be there to answer potential questions

Why you, and only you, should get these funds

Goals, Objectives and Outcomes

Goal The purpose of the program

Objectives Measurable result that will achieve the

program

Outcomes What will change and how you will know?

Goals, Objectives and Outcomes

To begin writing your goals, objectives, and outcomes, answer the following questions: What is the purpose of your program? How will you achieve the purpose of your

program? What will change? How will you know that substantive and

important changes have taken place?

Goals

Should be one or two The general overall issue to be solved - the big umbrella Usually begins with an active verb:

Enhance Augment Expand Increase Strengthen Improve Promote

For researchers, it’s the aim: Expand the knowledge of To establish To create

Objectives

Objectives Have to be SMART

S – specific M – measurable A – achievable R – realistic T – time bound

Multiple objectives should support the goal Also start with action verbs Little umbrellas

Under these are activities The objectives are made up of activities Can put in a table or in a Gantt chart

Timelines

A realistic assessment of time to meet goals How long do you need to achieve your goals and why

(one year, two, etc.)? Outline the time it will take to achieve your goal Why did you decide on this timeline? What is the timeline for spending the funds? Will you use graphics to describe the timeline?

Gantt chart (Microsoft Project or Excel) Calendar of activities Program schema

Evaluation

How the project will be measured and the results given to the donor

Quantitative evaluation = hard data Qualitative evaluation = soft data (e.g., opinions,

individual stories, surveys) Questions to ask:

What results will be evaluated in your project? How will you evaluate the results? Who will evaluate the results? When will the evaluation take place? What hard data will you use? What soft data will you use?

Evaluation (cont)

The evaluation is key You cannot tell the donor you’ve been

successful without the evaluation

Must be multi-faceted Talk about past successes Put evaluation instruments in appendix Take objectives to Institutional Research

office and ask them to help develop evaluation instruments

Evaluation (cont)

Everything that you are doing will need to be evaluated in terms of how it supports the goal and objectives

Look at what other similar organizations are using for evaluation

Use an external evaluator has part of team Ask program officer to recommend an

external evaluator

Evaluation (cont)

www.wmich.edu/evalctr www.cdc.gov/eval/resources.htm www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/measure.htm http://cecommerce.uwex.edu/

The Logic Model

Starts with an amount of money and then builds the activities, evaluation, and results given that sum

www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/pubs/onlinepubs/rrb/learning.html

Resources Activities Evaluation Results

$100,000 1.

2.

Key Personal

Who will be involved in the project and why are they qualified for this project

Questions to ask: Who will be involved in your project? What will be the function of those involved? What are the qualifications of the personnel?

Key Personal (cont)

People involved in the program Project director Content people Anyone directly involved in running the project Place resumes or CVs in appendix (project

director first; others in alphabetical order) If 30 people, take five strongest (a sample of

those involved are…) Highlight educational and experiential

qualifications Only include those people getting paid by the

grant

The Budget

Budgets vary according to donor and must reflect the donor’s specifications

Questions to ask: How much do you need to accomplish your

goals? What are the budget items? (e.g., personnel,

fringe benefits, equipment, space, consultants, etc.)

What costs will you contribute? How much does your institution charge

(indirect costs)?

The Budget (cont)

Personnel Include only the salaries and percentages of people

working directly on the project Other direct costs

Consulting Transportation Employee benefits

In-kind gifts Contributions – if necessary, estimate these

Indirect costs What an organization charges for their lights, our

time, the carpet, the bookkeeper, etc.

The Budget (cont)

See example “Pleasant Valley Community Center” budget Clean Footnoting

Personnel costs Salaries Fringe benefits (38% for CSU)

Check HR for value of benefits

Include faculty salaries (and possibly even fringe benefits) as from institution to show support if matching required or encouraged

Be sure to negotiate the results of the budget with those involved in implementing the project

For partners, write memorandums of agreement Incorporate 10-15% for cuts

Dissemination of the Results

Remember that grants are using other people’s money so that other people will benefit from it

Use numbers as much as possible Use a Web site Use newsletters To other similar organizations To the community At conferences and presentations “Whatever impact has had on our organization

will have the same impact on 235,000 people as described above.”

Sustainability

If there are no more funds, where will you get the funds to continue the project or will the project support itself

Become institutionalized Letters of support

Before Submitting

Talk with program manager Submit at least a week early

It’s Been Submitted!

Blind Not blind Stay out of their business

It’s Been Funded!

If federal grant, get congressperson to come to campus to present

For brochures and other materials, mention, “this project was funded in part by a grant from…”

Work the proposal

It Wasn’t Funded

You have a partner – the funding organization

Call the program officer to find out Why not funded What ranking How to get funded next time

Email all partners Reassure them that you will be working with

agency to make chances Ask for their continued support

Summary

Types of grants and sources of funding The most important components of any grant proposal Why projects get funded and why proposals fail The grant proposal development process Grant proposal resources How to build a grant proposal team The 10 most common elements of a winning proposal

and how to improve your chances of getting funded Specifics in writing the grant proposal What to do when your grant proposal gets funded What to do when your grant proposal doesn’t get funded