The basic grant proposal has 6 core sections. These sections will need to be in the proposal regardless of the size of the grant, a grant from a foundation or from the federal government. The persons reviewing the grant will look for the information in these sections to help them determine if they will fund the grant.
This article will cover the 6 sections and give you the basic information that should be included in each respective section.
The Grant Proposal
One important thing that I want to mention before we go on is to,
Read the grant instructions and then,
Read the grant instructions and then,
Read the grant instructions
Enough said…..
Section 1 – The Statement of Need
What do you hope to achieve with your program? This is where you will describe your program and what need it will serve. You will need to be able to state the problem and how you plan to do something to help correct it. It is important that you be able to give the reviewer factual information about why the problem exist or why the need is there. For example; you are asking for funding for a program that will be an afterschool program for children in your neighborhood that need special assistance. You will need the information on how they collectively performed on state test or other methods of testing. It might also be helpful to provide information on the income and living situation for the families. Only use information that comes from creditable sources like the US Census information or other government reports.
Section 2 – Goal and Objectives
What are the goals and objectives of your program? Be very clear in describing your primary goals. What is it you plan to accomplish? Also remember to think of your goal in measureable terms. For example, the program goal is to teach low income adults about financial budgeting. The objective of the program will be to enroll and teach 100 participants over a six month period. There can be more than one objective. You could also have an objective that at least 75% of the participants will be able to do a personal budget upon completing the class.
Section 3 – Program Activities
You have said what you are going to do now you must tell how you are going to do it. The details about your program. How are you going to teach the class? What will be the training environment? What are are the main topics that will be taught. A timeline of task and activities is a good thing to include. Be as detailed as possible. This information will show the reviewer that you have a well thought out program.
Section 4 – Evaluation Plan
This is sometimes the most overlooked part of a proposal by grant writers. It is also one of the most important to the reviewer and the grantor. How will you measure the success of your program? What are you going to track and measure and how are you going to do it. It is important to be able to show factual information to your funders about how well your program is working. By looking at this information you will also be able to see if there is a problem and start immediately correcting it. For example, say you planed to have 25 participants per month. The count of the participant sign-up sheets for each class shows only an average of 15 per class. This means that you must find other ways to get the word out.
Section 5 – Organizational Information
Who are you and why can you make this program successful? This is where you provide the information on your organization, the staff, your collaborative partners, and your experience that will show why you can make this program successful. If you do not have direct experience with this type of project, be sure to highlight the experience of your collaborative partners and any research and training you have received. Organizational profiles and executive summaries from your business plan will be good documents to get this information from. The resumes and other detailed information on your key staff will be included in the Attachments section of the proposal.
Section 6 – Attachments
In most grant proposals you will be required to include other documents in this section. The program budget including all cost and expenses, the letter from the IRS that qualifies your organization as a 501(c) 3, and the resumes of key persons to name a few. Generally the instructions for the grant will tell you what is required in this section.
Summary
These are the basic sections only. Some grants will require more detailed information and additional sections. I recommend that you focus first on these sections. They will provide the core information about your program. Be clear in your writing. Don’t attempt to use technical words and jargon unless you fully understand them. Also please, please, please have others review your
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