There is always more to learn about how to research and find the best grant opportunities and funders for your organization. But what happens when it’s time to talk to that potential funder? What do you say? How do you get their attention and fuel their curiosity? How can you talk about your nonprofit without overwhelming them with details?

With the passage of the CARES Act and other COVID-19 response funding packages there has been a surge in stimulus-sourced grant opportunities, the likes of which have not been seen since 2008-2009 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Out of the nearly $2 trillion CARES Act package came a number of direct allocations or entitlements, as well as competitive grant opportunities totaling approximately $234 billion and acting as a means for local and state governments, healthcare and education providers, and other organizations to prepare for- respond to- and maintain continued operations during the global coronavirus pandemic. Of this amount, the US Department of Education alone was granted $30.75 billion in funding to support continued K-12 and higher education efforts. 

While not a new notion, the desire to avoid hasty generalizations within one’s grant proposal is ever present. We are all guilty of it. Facing character or page limits, we often try to distill complex ideas down to as few of words as possible while still making our message clear. We make broad-based statements such as, “surveillance cameras can help our police department reduce crime”, “video conferencing equipment will empower our hospital fight the opioid epidemic”, or “1:1 classroom technology is necessary for successful education in this digital age”. However, there is a huge problem with these kinds of statements. They are weak arguments that do not tell the funder anything of actual substance.

The 2020 grant landscape contains dozens of education, workforce development, and public safety programs offering priority consideration for projects deployed inside a Qualified Opportunity Zone (QOZ). This classification originates with the US Department of Treasury and - at its core - has absolutely nothing to do with grants. Zones are selected by individual State Governors as a way to bring private financial investment into distressed communities. So you might find yourself wondering, “why does language about QOZ tax breaks and capital gains continue to pop up in our grants world?”

Back by popular demand – another answer to a recent Grantscast question! This Grantscast was focused on the funding landscape for K-12 education in the year ahead. One attendee asked:
When it comes to competitive grant funding for districts to apply for, why do some states have more opportunities than others?

The 2020 federal fiscal year started on October 1 and once again we are operating under a continuing resolution instead of a budget. Fortunately, federal agencies (as well as experienced grant professionals) can look to the recent past to navigate the situation. Take a deep breath and relax because the grants landscape is much more predictable than it seems, even in the absence of a federal budget. The following Q&A is intended to help grant-seekers “read the tea leaves” when it comes to grant programming in 2020.

As more and more school districts and institutions of higher education gain interest in the possibilities of Esports, many wonder how they will be able to finance the often expensive equipment needed for start-up and eventual tournament success in these new arenas.  Following we’ll look at some of the biggest challenges to finding external funding for your Esports initiative, as well as offer guidance on potential solutions

Along with the changing colors of the leaves, Autumn brings with it the release of several health professional education grants. These grants, offered through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), are meant to overcome health professional shortages in urban, rural and medically underserved areas. These grants are usually led by an appropriate institution of higher education (IHE) in partnership with healthcare facilities that serve as clinical rotation sites for students. The following is a primer on what funding opportunities we are expecting to open soon as well as a few tips for developing a competitive proposal.

Not surprisingly, demand for the pilot round of SVPP funding in Summer 2018 far exceeded the available supply of grant dollars. Only 45% of the 200+ submitted applications were funded, and competition for the 2019 grant cycle (applications due May 31st) is anticipated to be even more fierce. These steep odds have districts across the US asking – What is the Department of Justice looking for? How can we stand out from the pack? In searching for answers to these questions, it is beneficial to review previous awards.

Curious to know how “grant-seeker friendly” your state is and how your SEA stacks up compared to others? We’ve grouped each of the 50 SEAs into one of four categories based on the characteristics find most helpful when setting out to uncover grant funding opportunities. Most important is whether the SEA offers competitive grant opportunities in the first place.

Curious to know how “grant-seeker friendly” your state is and how your SEA stacks up compared to others? We’ve grouped each of the 50 SEAs into one of four categories based on the characteristics find most helpful when setting out to uncover grant funding opportunities. Most important is whether the SEA offers competitive grant opportunities in the first place.

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

On July 31st President Trump signed into law the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. This bill effectively reauthorizes the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Perkins funds are commonly known for being the federal government’s primary vehicle for supporting Career and Technical Education (CTE) at high schools and community/technical colleges across the country. This is a win for career education advocates who have spent the last 6 years arguing for updates to Perkins law in effort to make it more consistent with previous changes to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (made in 2013).

In response to overwhelming positive feedback given by you – our readers – to this previous article, we’ve compiled a companion list of (new or pending) grant funding for an additional 15 states below. Don’t see your State on this list or its companion piece from our last issue? Don’t fret! We expect even more states follow suit in the coming years. While you wait, check out the Department of Education or Department of Justice websites for other federal program offerings that may arise. You may even consider contacting your State Administering Agency (SAA) for information on school safety funding coming down the pike for your area.

In the wake of recent high profile school shootings across the US, Congress passed the Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing (STOP) School Violence Act in June 2018. The bill included key provisions to improve school safety initiatives, providing students and teachers with the tools they need to recognize mental health crises, respond to violent attacks, mitigate risk exposure, and prevent future acts of violence. The $75 million in funding allocated to the STOP School Violence Act in 2018 is dedicated to three brand new grant programs.

With the fiscal year 18 budget recently approved, the Department of Education has released funding for a slew of highly-anticipated grant programs. Many of these newly-opened grant opportunities also happen to align with the current administration’s push for more STEM education. So now that “grant season” is upon us, how did our predictions turn out? Read on to find out about programs open now!

On the same week more than 200,000 students and teachers marched on Washington to protest gun violence in schools, Congress and President Trump signed into law the 2018 Omnibus Spending Bill. The bill – which funds all federal programs for the remainder of the fiscal year - includes key provisions for expanding K-12 school safety programs.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 includes modest to significant increases across the board, increasing defense allocations by $26 billion and non-defense domestic appropriations by $33 billion. In total, Congress passed a budget that essentially rolls back the draconian cuts that were instituted in 2013 - known as sequestration - surpassing the administration’s request by $143 billion.

When preparing a grant proposal there are several key elements that go into the final product. Often, the narrative – or project description – section is that which receives most of the applicant organization’s time and attention. Indeed, there have been ample articles written here, and elsewhere, providing tips and tricks for developing a proposal narrative. But an equally important piece of the proposal is often over looked: the budget. As such, we wanted to take moment to share three Q &As from...

Applicants are always striving to make their proposals compelling in an increasingly competitive environment. One of the most important tasks that is recommended during the due diligence phase is to familiarize yourself with the funder. A key information source for this activity are the four-year strategic plans that federal agencies are required to make publicly available to comply with the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993. Unfortunately, the current strategic plan for...

It’s no secret that the practice of grant seeking is pretty involved. It consists of countless hours of work: researching state, federal, and foundation funding sources; sorting through various opportunities to choose those that best match your project’s goals, funding needs, and timeline; figuring out what aspects the funder specifically requires for your project; collecting partnership agreements; not to mention actually writing the proposal! Moreover, few organizations are fortunate enough to have the means for keeping a full-time grant professional on staff. So what is an organization to do?...

Imagine this scene: You find yourself sitting at the computer, coffee in hand. The project details your team has spent weeks carefully plotting are printed and neatly stacked in the center of your desk. The plan is ready, the budget set. All that’s left to do is type the grant narrative. You open a fresh Word document and are met with that awful blank page… We’ve all had that moment of dismay – It’s daunting to start a grant proposal from scratch. Well-written narratives contain an overwhelming...

Whether you’re just starting out as a grantseeker or have been working in the field for years, and whether you work in education, government, or healthcare, you should find some useful information and insights in this issue of FUNDED – our biggest issue yet!You can download the issue directly at http://grantsoffice.com/Portals/0/funded/issues/FUNDEDNov2017.pdfHigher education takes the lead with highlights of two NSF grant programs that support research infrastructure-building initiatives across...

Back in April 2017, our Grants Office LLC team members – Elizabeth Evans and Ashley Schultz – were featured in the Campus Safety (CS) Magazine. CS Magazine serves campus police chiefs, security directors, IT personnel, emergency managers and executive administrators involved in the public safety and security of major hospitals, schools and universities in the United States. See the full text of their article below. Check out http://www.campussafetymagazine.com/ to learn more!

This September, President Trump issued an executive memorandum to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos instructing her to dedicate $200 million per year of existing competitive grant funds to support high-quality classroom instruction projects in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and computer science fields.

Curious to know where we are in this process and how this may impact future education grant funding? Read on!

One thing that plagues the healthcare industry is an overabundance of acronyms and terms that can leave the heads of the uninitiated spinning.

In answering some basic questions through this Q&A, the hope is that universities and research institutes will be better able to leverage such grants to fund much needed infrastructure.

    When most Americans think of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, they probably don’t think of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society, nor do they probably think of how the HEA was established to strengthen the resources of public Institutions of Higher Education (IHE).  More likely, what comes to mind is the ability for students to receive financial assistance for post-secondary education.  But what about the funding that goes directly to institutions?     When Title III (“Institutional...

    Hey readers from Higher Education Institutions! Yes, you! November is here and do you know what that means? It’s almost time for your institution to submit its request for designation as an eligible Title III or Title V school.     You may recall that last year the Department of Education deviated from the norm, opting for a November 3rd, 2014 release and December 22nd, 2014 deadline rather than its usual springtime release.  Based on that shift, prudent grant administrators are probably...

    In March, President Obama announced plans for a new, multi-sector workforce development program known as the “TechHire Initiative.”     According to the President the Department of Labor planned to dedicate $100 million (collected from H-1B visa fees) towards a new competitive grant competition.       Its aim? Promoting the comeback of an ever shrinking middle class through training and education programs that would enable Americans to earn higher wages.     At the time of the President’s...

Rarely are there grants expressly for the purpose of purchasing technology equipment. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is host to one of these exceptions, the Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) grant, wherein the USDA funds the acquisition of video conferencing equipment for rural end-users proposing either distance learning or telemedicine projects.



Opportunities such as DLT are few and far between and often come with strict eligibility requirements that knock...

It’s no secret that the National Science Foundation (NSF) concerns itself with awarding grant opportunities related to STEM endeavors. However, often times we only consider cutting-edge, high-level research, or sub-field specific grants. Yet, there also exists a plethora of fellowship opportunities that are available to individual researchers. Often forgotten are those grants which can be utilized as a vehicle to support the effectiveness of STEM learning for people of all ages in all settings -...

The landscape of American K-12 education is in flux. The options available to families for educating their children are now more diverse than ever. But what are the differences between these options and how does that relate to grants funding? In effort to provide some clarification, I have outlined a few basic definitions regarding the various K-12 education providers how these different types of providers can receive grant funding from state, federal, and foundation sources.

In the current version of the 2015 Federal Budget Proposal, both the Department of Labor and the Department of Education have proposed allocations to fund grants for youth college and career readiness partnership projects. Of particular interest are the Department of Labor's "American Apprenticeship Grant Program," and the Department of Education's "High School Redesign Grant Program" and "College Pathways and Accelerated Learning Grant Program."

The May 2014 issue of FUNDED is now available for download.

 

 

It doesn't take "Adonis DNA" or "Tiger Blood" to win workforce development grants from the US Department of Labor.  It does, however, require well-defined functional relationships with multiple employers in your region. This one theme has become pervasive in DOL programming in FY 2014, whether you applied to recent opportunities such as Youth CareerConnect and Youthbuild or have proposals under development for H-1B  Ready to Work Partnership Grants (Due June 19) or the Trade Adjustment Assistance...

When most Americans think of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, they probably don't think of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society, nor do they probably think of how the HEA was established to strengthen the resources of public Institutions of Higher Education (IHE). More likely, what comes to mind is the ability for students to receive financial assistance for post-secondary education. But what about the funding that goes directly to institutions?

 

When Title III ("Institutional...

Some grant programs change very little over time. If you wanted to know in 1984, for example, where fire departments got their funding to improve their firefighting operations, the answer would be firefighter grants, which, aside from a name change, are strikingly similar to the 2013 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program grants, both of which trace their legislative authorization to the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of school safety...

I3 Development grants provide funding to support high-potential and relatively untested practices, strategies, or programs, whereas Validation and Scale-up grants have a higher threshold for evidence.

Although funded through the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, YouthBuild projects cover a wide range of functional areas, including education, housing, and crime prevention.

Since 2000, ESSCP grants have supported a broad range of counseling programs that tackle student achievement and self esteem to mental health and family services. This year’s program includes priorities for school engagement, environment, and safety, as well as for military-connected students.

Mechanical engineering jobs are one of the occupations for which foreign workers can obtain H-1B visas. H-1B-eligible occupations are also a focus of the H-1B Ready to Work Partnership Grants, with the intent of enabling long-term unemployed American workers to fill these positions.

ITEST grants generally involve a partnership between an institution of higher education and a secondary school, but may also include organizations actively working in technology fields that are the focus of the ITEST project.

Agencies around the country initiate technology projects in different ways and for different reasons. For some, technology is a way of keeping current and of ensuring that stakeholders have access to the latest and greatest in services. For others, a governing body may mandate a greater focus on technology, in the broad, undefined way governing bodies sometimes have. Still others are won over by a compelling case for return on investment or quality improvement. Or a technology salesperson may have let you know that the current technology has reached the end of its useful life and needs to be replaced.

May the finger-pointing and intense partisan rhetoric commence!  Shortly after finally passing a continuing resolution to fund the government through the rest of fiscal year 2013 (which ends September 30^th), both chambers of Congress went to work on a budget for 2014.   Recent history suggests that having a federal budget in place by the start of the fiscal year is a long shot.  The truth is that the federal government has not passed an actual budget bill, nevermind an on-time one, since April 2009.  Instead, we have seen a long line of continuing resolutions, or temporary stopgap measures that extend funding in an effort to avoid government shutdowns.  While these resolutions keep funds flowing, they wreak havoc on the ability of federal agencies to effectively plan their grant programming and financial obligations for the year.  That uncertainty amongst federal agencies trickles all the way down to public and non-profit organizations that rely on federal grant funds to fund their programs and initiatives.

Sequestration may have an impact on the traditional educational federal and state funding opportunities you count on annually, however generally speaking; it will likely not have an effect on corporate and private foundation funding.  In fact, many of these foundations invest their endowments in the stock market, which is performing rather well at the moment.  Now would be an excellent time to review your corporate and private foundation funding portfolio and consider mounting an intensive foundation funding campaign.

Across the U.S., private foundations are experiencing an ever-increasing demand for grant funding.  Unfortunately, for many of these agencies, the supply of funding has diminished in recent years. Among hundreds or even thousands of unsolicited grant proposals, few new applicants are able to close the deal by receiving an award. Despite this bleak reality, there are several steps your organization can take to strengthen your approach to foundation funding and increase your likelihood of being among the elite organizations awarded with grant support.

Unfortunately, we have system of government that is too often reactionary as politics usually prevent it from being proactive when it comes to important issues.  Indeed, in the wake of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, you would be hard pressed to find a politician that is not ringing the bell when it comes to making schools safer.  Certainly the aforementioned quote by the U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan is accurate in indicating that school safety is a multi-faceted problem that requires community-wide solutions.  However, pointing the fingers at local governments, community organizations and the private sector does seem to avoid the question of the role of the federal government when it comes to preventing such tragedies in the future.

With the funding landscape diminished across all sectors, it is refreshing to see a new program open up, especially a program focusing on Indian Education at the state level. The Department of Education introduced, on May 29, a pilot program called State-Tribal Education Partnership (STEP). Tribal education agencies (TEAs) will be able to apply for $1.9 million in competitive grants.

In today’s classroom, technology has become a huge component of the curriculum for teachers and students. School districts are racing to keep up with lightning speed of changing technologies while also dealing with decreasing budgets. Over the past several years education technology funding has decreased significantly. Programs like Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) have been dismantled and other technology programs have been scaled back. Unfortunately, these grants that focus on math, science, and technology provided support to programs that are absolutely essential to a student’s education and will greatly impact their future success.

The Department of Education recently announced the 23 highest rated applicants for the Investing in Innovation Fund. With over 600 applicants and $150 million in funding in 2011, this was a highly anticipated competition. Awaiting a private match that was to be fulfilled by December 9th 2011, applicants ranging from school districts to nonprofits in partnership with districts or a consortium of schools would receive funding under either Scale up, Validation or Development awards. The partnership that appeared to stand out the most to reviewers were the nonprofit partnered with an LEA. They accounted for 10 of the 23 highest rated applicants. On the other end, the smallest amount of awards went to a nonprofit partnered with a consortium of schools, with 6 of the 23 highest rated applicants.

According to a 2009 report from the Pew Center on the States, a division of The Pew Charitable Trusts, more than 7 million people are in jail or prison, or on probation or parole. With one in every 31 adults under some form of correctional control, the economic costs and burdens associated with this statistic are no doubt overwhelming. Compounding this issue is the fact that too often successful prisoner reentry—the process of leaving prison and returning to society—isn’t solely correlated to a specific release date.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, Recovery Act) is now over two-and-a-half years old. Within that time frame, over $200 billion in new grants, loans, and contracts was awarded in order to spur economic growth, maintain employment, and invest in various national priorities. While the open grant opportunities have come and gone, their effects are still being felt as some of the most high profile programs continue to influence the national agenda.

When the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced major changes in their upcoming slate of well-known nursing education programs for Fiscal Year 2012, many people started to panic . One change in particular, inter-professional education, which is being emphasized across all of their programs, has received mixed reviews. While the academic jury is still out on the effectiveness of inter-professional education methodologies compared to traditional nursing programs, HRSA has went all-in on supporting such models. For instance, the Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention Program (NEPQR) will fund three-year demonstration projects in inter-professional education in the context of advancing the diverse priorities applicants are able to target historically under the program. In the past, HRSA funding under this program was limited to educating nursing personnel exclusively.

By Christopher Haight
October 2011

The expansion of broadband to rural schools is a critical step in eliminating the digital divide and ensuring students have access to the tools of the 21st century. Most importantly for students and educators alike, access to broadband internet services creates new opportunities and methods for increasing student achievement.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nation’s current unemployment rate sits at an uninspiring 9%. And with today’s economy ripe for continued hard times, this issue is often alarmingly compounded by an associated lack of domestic skilled workers available to fill necessary positions.

As a part of the final deal on FY2011 appropriations, Congress afforded Race to the Top an additional $700 million. While this is a steep drop from its initial $4 billion investment under the Recovery Act, it still represents a significant win for the Obama administration as it seeks to sustain one of its signature grant programs and education reform initiatives.

Regina Renaldi is the Executive Director of Priority Programs at St. Vrain Valley School District in Colorado. St. Vrain received the highest scoring application in the Investing in Innovation (i3) grant competition. Ms. Renaldi was generous enough to sit down and discuss with us the i3 grant and St. Vrain's grantseeking in general. This is our conversation.

While Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 and FY2012 budget talks will likely continue to dominate the political psyche for the foreseeable future, other important legislative endeavors remain alive - albeit in a much more latent way. Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) has been a standing priority for the Obama administration, as it remains an area of possible bipartisan achievement.

The USDA's Distance Learning and Telemedicine (or DLT) program is one of the most popular annual federal grant programs. Highly competitive, the DLT program makes awards ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 for organizations that provide education or healthcare telecommunications services to rural populations. DLT also has one of the more complex application packages, and requires applicants to provide population tables, maps, and poverty rates for each proposed service area (end-users), as well as hub sites from which services will be delivered.

President Obama's second State of the Union speech may have easily been titled "Investing in Innovation," borrowing from one of his signature education reform grant programs funded under the Recovery Act. Throughout this speech to the U.S. Congress and nation, Obama emphasized the imperative to support innovation for the health of the U.S. economy and future welfare of the country. While the speech was short on specific policy items or legislative goals, Obama made clear broad priorities going forward, including energy, education, and infrastructure.

Of the two bills signed into law that enacted the historic health care reform effort under President Obama, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 features one of the least cited yet critically important grant opportunities since the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).

A crucial factor in providing a first-rate 21st century education for our students is to ensure they have access to 21st century technologies. While technology is certainly no panacea to the education conundrums confronting the United States, it is becoming ever more important that students today know how to use technology effectively as they progress through higher levels of academia and into the workforce.

Despite growing up in a truly Digital Generation fed by Wi-fi access, smart phones, and iPods, U.S. students are falling alarmingly behind in the same academic and professional fields that created such ubiquitous modern-day necessities. In mid-September, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and the National Science Board (NSB) released reports calling for renewed attention to how the United States attracts and educates students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, or more popularly referred to as STEM.

Like most components of the $787 billion Recovery Act passed into law in 2009, the $4.35 billion Race to the Top grant program often receives notice as "unprecedented" for its sheer size. With nearly every state in the U.S. facing a budget deficit or outright fiscal crisis, the billions for education funding represent a critically important source to keep local school districts afloat.

With most schools officially on summer vacation, now is the perfect time for developing projects and mapping out a grant strategy for the coming months. As many grant programs for educational institutions involve significant collaboration, the summer months can provide time for creating relationships and beginning dialogue with potential grant partners.

While the initial excitement of the Recovery Act may be decreasing, unparalleled levels of funding will continue to flow to schools across the country over the next several months under Recovery Act programs. On March 29th, Delaware and Tennessee were announced as the first two awardees under the much anticipated Race to the Top program. Approximately $4 billion will be distributed directly to states to drive education reform and states will be reapplying under the Phase 2 deadline of June 1, 2010.