Mindy Wright The Ohio State University Grant Writing 101 Mindy Wright The Ohio State University

Funding is a Process Letter of inquiry/intent Funder RFP Release Proposal Submission Proposal Review Award or rejection Meeting with Funder about rejected proposal

Letter of Inquiry/LOI LOIs are first steps for a funder to determine “good fits.” Examples: Lumina Foundation Women’s Fund of Central Ohio

RFP Funder Request for Proposals are based in the funder’s goals. They are guidelines that help proposers frame their proposals to meet the goals of the funder. They help reviewers rate proposals in terms of the funder’s goals USDA Community Food Projects Dollar General Adult Literacy Grants Your Projects: What do your funders ask for?

Typical Parts of a Grant Proposal Cover Letter Statement of Need Project Description Goals Methods Evaluation Sustainability Budget Organization Information Conclusion Appendix and Supporting Materials

+ Funding Organization Mission Criteria Women’s Fund of Central Ohio: Social Change USDA Community Foods Project: Community Involvement

Statement of Need What evidence do you have to show need? Your own organization’s research US Census www.census.gov/ Community Research Partners www.communityresearchpartners.org/

Project Description Goals Methods/Activities/Timeline Evaluation Write down in a few sentences or bullet points the goals of a particular project on which you are working. Are they easy to understand? Can they be written more concisely or accurately? Methods/Activities/Timeline Evaluation How does your evaluation connect with your goals and with the funders’ priorities? Sustainability

Boilerplate Mission/Description of Organization Statement of Need 501 © 3 documents Organization budget/audit Columbus Foundation Power Philanthropy (Standard Language. In late 1800’s ads and columns intended for widespread distribution in newspapers were prepared on steel like that used for boilers.)

Proposal Review Reviewers are given grants and a rubric for scoring Service Learning Rubric Women’s Fund Grant Reader Information Reviewers’ scores are worked together Adding totals Averaging Board decides awards based on available funding, funder mission, and reviewers’ scores

Writing Tips Give readers exactly WHAT they want and exactly HOW they want it. Use funders’ language when at all possible—to emphasize connections between your project and the funder’s priorities and to make your proposal easy to follow. Write simply and clearly. Use active verbs.