O.k., I am sure that you are smart enough to notice the big gap in posts between June and now. No, I haven't been on a cruise for the last several months. I have been busy, busy, busy writing and working. I have been spending a lot of my time exploring other social networking options as vehicles for getting information to all of you (Facebook, etc.).
There are so many options these days that it's almost overwhelming, isn't it?
In any event, we're back here.....after all of our searching and exploration, it has become clear that this is the place to focus on for sharing our information.
So, feel free to follow us on Twitter or Facebook, but but the grantgoddess.com website and the blog (right here) will be the place to come for your grant-related information.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Write to the RFA or the Rubric?
This is an interesting question - should you address your narrative to the RFA instructions or the scoring rubric (if one is provided for you)?
The best answer, of course, is both. But what if the instructions in the RFA (that's Request for Applications) and the scoring rubric differ?
I participated in a grant competition this summer in which the funder put out the word that they knew the instructions and the scoring rubric did not match, and that even though the readers would be instructed to use the scoring rubric to make their decisions, they wanted the applicants to follow the instructions in the RFP. the scoring rubric was just provided for our information. Huh?
Here's my advice (and what I did for that competition over the summer):
Follow the instructions. However, make sure you also address everything in the scoring rubric. Unless the scoring rubric and the instructions give you opposite instructions (usually, if they don't match, it's the case that one just leaves out criteria that are included in the other), you'll have nothing to worry about if you write to both.
The best answer, of course, is both. But what if the instructions in the RFA (that's Request for Applications) and the scoring rubric differ?
I participated in a grant competition this summer in which the funder put out the word that they knew the instructions and the scoring rubric did not match, and that even though the readers would be instructed to use the scoring rubric to make their decisions, they wanted the applicants to follow the instructions in the RFP. the scoring rubric was just provided for our information. Huh?
Here's my advice (and what I did for that competition over the summer):
Follow the instructions. However, make sure you also address everything in the scoring rubric. Unless the scoring rubric and the instructions give you opposite instructions (usually, if they don't match, it's the case that one just leaves out criteria that are included in the other), you'll have nothing to worry about if you write to both.
Monday, June 1, 2009
The Real Payoff
I was at a school board meeting last week and I watched a presentation made my some elementary school students. They were sharing videos they had made through their participation in the GenYES program, funded through an Enhancing education Through Technology (EETT) grant. Theie videos were all about the Lifelong Guidelines and Life Skills they had learned through their schools’ participation in another grant program – Partnerships in Character Education.
Several years ago, I was involved with the writing of both of those grant applications, and over the past few years I have served as the evaluator for both of those programs.
As I watched those students make their presentation, I kept thinking back to a few years ago when we were working on those grant applications. Each one started as a vision, an idea. Those ideas were put together in a grant application and here we are, years later, seeing some of those ideas come to life.
Yeah, I get paid for the grant writing and program evaluation services I provide, but this is the real payoff.
I wish that anyone who doubts that grant writing is a creative endeavor could have been there that night to see the proof that’s actually very creative. It can really change the world around you.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Our Favorite Clients - Revisited
If you are new to The Grant Goddess Speaks you may not have had time to go through the archives (see the archive directory on the bar to the right) to find some of the helpful and interesting posts from the past.
Some are worth re-visiting, and I will re-post or link to an archived post from time to time just to give our newcomers a chance to see some of what came before (and why it is such a good idea to browse the archives every now and then). This also gives our long-time readers a chance to reminisce or catch something they may have missed the first time around.
Today's oldie but goodie is Our Favorite Clients.
Enjoy!
Some are worth re-visiting, and I will re-post or link to an archived post from time to time just to give our newcomers a chance to see some of what came before (and why it is such a good idea to browse the archives every now and then). This also gives our long-time readers a chance to reminisce or catch something they may have missed the first time around.
Today's oldie but goodie is Our Favorite Clients.
Enjoy!
Friday, May 29, 2009
Resource: The Foundation Center
The Foundation Center website is full of valuable information for individual and non-profit grant seekers. In addition to giving access to The Foundation Directory (both paper and online versions), the site gives you access to a plethora of online training opportunities. Some of them are offered for a fee, but some a totally free.
You can also sign up for a number of very valuable free email newsletters that will send even more grant seeking and grant writing resources directly to your inbox.
Take a few minutes to explore this valuable resource.
You can also sign up for a number of very valuable free email newsletters that will send even more grant seeking and grant writing resources directly to your inbox.
Take a few minutes to explore this valuable resource.
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About Creative Resources & Research
- Grant Goddess
- Woodland, CA, United States
- Creative Resources and Research is a consulting firm specializing in grant writing, grant seeking, program evaluation and professional development training. We have worked with hundreds of clients including public and private schools, school districts, universities, non-profit organizations, and social service agencies throughout California, securing over $155 million from federal, state and private foundation funding sources over the past decade. Our primary grant writers and program evaluators have over 50 years of combined experience in the education and social services fields. At CRR we prefer a personal approach to the clients we work with; by developing long term relationships, we are better suited to match client’s needs with available funding sources. We provide a variety of services to help assist you, including grant writing, evaluation consulting, professional development opportunities, and workshops.