Again, this is a true and false statement. Every field has its own language that quickly becomes jargon. Grant writing is no exception. If you are a purist, you don’t write grants. You write proposals for grants. A grant is money given for a specific purpose that doesn’t need to be repaid. Those of us who “write grants” don’t print the checks or even sign them. We define a project, collect appropriate materials to justify the need, and write an application requesting the awarding of that money. We “propose” opportunities for a foundation, corporation, or government agency to give away its funds.
There is an extensive glossary at the back of the book, and lists abbreviations for government divisions that make grants. Since I don’t use abbreviations when I write a proposal, I try not to use them in the book. A few acronyms and some unfamiliar words are sure to creep in, however. To aid your reading, here is some of the most frequently used jargon I share with other grant seekers, philanthropists, and the government, listed in the approximate order of frequency with which you’ll hear and eventually use them
yourself.
- RFP—Request for Proposal. This is the formal, printed announcement in the Federal Register that describes federal government funds that are open for applications. Over the years, it has become synonymous with any notice of available funds from all levels of the government and public and private foundations. Since all the rules and regulations for a particular grant are contained in this single document, the RFP will be your indispensible guide to applying for each grant. Also, because people can’t leave a good thing alone, a host of variations have appeared. RFA (Request for Funding Assistance), NOFA (Notice of Funding Availability), SGA (Solicitation for Grant Applications), FFO (Federal Funding Opportunity), and FOA (Funding Opportunity Announcement) are a few current ones.
- NPO—Nonprofit Organization. Databases of funding sources and brief announcements of RFPs often abbreviate the types of organizations that can apply for funds.
- AVO—All Volunteer Organization
- CBO—Community-Based Organization. Sometimes the same as an
- NPO; sometimes AVOs, FBOs, and NPOs grouped together
- FBO—Faith-Based Organization
- LEA—Local Education Agency. Usually a school district or county office of education
- • IHE—Institution of Higher Education. Colleges, universities, trade schools
- 501(c)(3)—Section of the IRS code that designates an organization as charitable and tax exempt. The vast majority of foundations require grant recipients to be 501(c)(3) organizations.
- LOI—Letter of Intent. A brief, often one-page, letter summarizing your grant request that is increasingly requested as a preliminary screening step by foundations. Since it’s often difficult to write a summary before you have written the entire proposal, an LOI requires all the planning and decisions regarding a project are in place before you send it.
- Program Office. A staff member of a government agency, foundation, or corporate-giving program who administers the application process. This is usually the person who has practical answers to questions about a funding opportunity you are researching.
- Collaborators. Partners who have come together from different organizations or disciplines to work on a mutually beneficial project or program. The vast majority of government grants require some form of collaboration, and once again, foundations are following the trend. Members can include public and private organizations, government agencies, and individuals.
- Sustainability. The expectation that ongoing funds to continue the research or project will be raised from other sources when the grant expires. Both government and foundation applications often ask for a sustainability plan.
- Logic Model. A process that visually depicts assumptions and elements of a specific program. It can be as simple as describing the situation, inputs, outputs, and outcomes in chart form, or as elaborate as a circular flowchart with goals, resources, activities, outputs, and outcomes.
- MOU—Memorandum of Understanding. Legal document spelling out what the lead agency/principal investigator and each collaborating group or individual will and will not do to implement the proposal
There are two ideas contained in this heading, and both are true. First, preparing a grant proposal is a team effort. It’s important that one person do the actual writing for continuity and completeness, but you’ll need support from other staff collecting the needed information, and developing a realistic budget, and you’ll need buy-in and approval from your governing board. If a school district, college, university, hospital, or research lab will be the official body receiving the grant, there will be a designated chain of command to create, review, and give approval to the final proposal. Establishing and cultivating relationships throughout your organization are important from the very beginning.
The second meaning of the heading refers to the evidence of partnerships with other researchers or agencies that an increasing number of funding sources require. In this book, I’m working on the premise that all grant requests will be collaborative in nature. If you want funds to add nutritional education to an existing food pantry, you need to know staff at the local WIC (a federally funded food supplement and support program for Women, Infants, and Children), have at least a nodding acquaintance with school, hospital, and senior
food service personal, and be familiar with the churches, temples, and other groups that also distribute food and clothing. If you’re seeking research funds, partners can be in other institutions or in other departments.
Boyd, the corn breeder mentioned at the start of the chapter, will probably want to consult with an entomologist to learn more about his corn borers, a toxicologist to develop an effective kill agent, an engineer to produce an effective delivery system for the insecticide, and local authorities for permission to spray or otherwise kill the nasty bugs. It’s a huge plus for your grant application if you can work together on the proposed new project. Yes, this adds time and complexity to your project, but it also adds depth, avoids duplication, and hopefully is more effective in meeting your long-term goals—and it increases your chances
for receiving grants.
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