Grants Office

Valuable tips and resources

• If a funding source looks fascinating but doesn't match your idea, move on. Look for another source. Don't think that a funder will love your idea even though it's not what they're looking for. (The ancient Greeks had a word for this.)
• Allow enough time to develop your ideas and morph them into a winning proposal. Estimate how long it will take to build your grant and double the time.
• Bring in others. More people = more ideas. Plus, grant sources like to see evidence of collaboration.
• Need vs. Want. You know what you want the money for. Now, backwards-think that to what students (or teachers, or the community) need. That’s what grantmakers are first interested in. Your idea is a solution to that need.
• Make your objectives realistic. If they are not realistic, you will not have fun implementing your project.
• Start the budget early. That way you will know whether you can afford your idea. Or, you can adjust your idea.
• If you want technology from your grant, be sure it fits in your project so well it is indispensable.

Writing Tutorials

As you look through the tutorials below, remember that every grant has the following elements:

• Needs or problem statement (Why?)
• Measurable goals and objectives to meet those needs
• Activities that meet those goals and objectives:
• Who
• What
• When
• Where
• How
• Will it work? How will you know if you are successful? (Evaluation plan)
• How much will it cost? (Budget to pay for the activities.)

Online tutorials to get you started

• Foundation Center
  Proposal Writing Short Course
• Jackson Public Schools
  Grant Writing Tutorial
• Grant Proposal
  Six Guidelines
• Minnesota Council on Foundations
  Writing a Successful Grant Proposal
• Purdue University
  Grant Writing Tutorial