A Few Words from the Coach About Focus

The Coach's Corner section of the grantgoddess.com member site is full of inspiration and wisdom from certified coach, MaryEllen Bergh. She'll also be sharing some of it here for everyone. If you want more, learn about becoming a member.

For now, here's what the Grant Coach has to say about Focus:

In the movie “UP”, a pack of dogs are viciously approaching our heroes – teeth bared, eyes   focused and fixed on their goal. All of a sudden, there’s a shout, “Squirrel!” The dogs suddenly lose sight of our heroes and run excitedly in all directions, falling upon one another in their frenzy to find the squirrel.

How do you discriminate between distractions that contribute to your creative process or those that have you chasing squirrels?

Try these 3 ways to stay focused:

1)      Eliminate distractions. Turn off the phone, close the door, close email, stay away from squirrels.

2)      Quickly picture what you want to achieve. Stay with it for a couple of minutes to truly experience the feeling. The start your writing or other project.

3)      Take a short walk. Before you return, think of two things that you want to accomplish when you return.

Online Charity Links Donors and Teachers

Have you ever wondered how you can donate some money to a school and know that it really gets into the hands of a teacher doing good work with kids? DonorsChoose.org can help.

Teachers across America post about a classroom project and what they need to make it happen.  requests include everything from microscopes to instruments. Donors go to the site, pick a project that interests them, and donate through a secure link. Donors get a cost report showing how their money was spent, pictures of the project in action, and a thank you note from the teacher.  Donors who give over $100 may also get thank you notes from students.

You can give any amount (as little as $1.00 or as much as...well, millions of dollars!) and know that your cash is making a difference for youth.  The folks at DonorsChoose.org call it "citizen philanthropy."  I call it a great way to make a difference.

Oh, I almost forgot.  If you're a teacher looking for some supplies to make a classroom project work, visit the site, sign up, and enter your project. Then come back here to grantgoddess.com and we'll help you get the word out to prospective donors.

Tips for Preparing for the Upcoming Grant Season

You know you need to write some grants this year for your organization and you're itching to get started, but there are no applications out right now. What should you do? Isn't there some way to get started and avoid the last minute grant writing rush?

Yes. And No. There will always be a rush to the deadline as you try to assemble complicated applications with less than 4 to 6 weeks between announcement and deadline, all while still trying to do your regular job. However, there are some things you can do to get ahead of the curve a little and make your job easier.

1) Pull together your needs data and get it organized. Take a look at available survey results for your agency, and quantitative data documenting the number of people you served in the last year and, most importantly, the outcomes documented for those clients. Don't wait for an application to be out; look at your data now, get it organized, and determine what it's telling you.

2) Write your brief needs statement. If you draft out a page or two describing your agency's need (documented by data, of course), you can easily modify it to fit a formal application.

3) Prepare all of the additional materials you need for an application. If you manage a non-profit agency, prepare your agency budget, develop an updated list of board members, and make sure your IRS letter documenting your non-profit status is handy. Consider putting together a single file that has all of these documents in one place so you'll be ready when an application is released.

4) Develop a plan to consult grants.gov and the websites of funders to which you hope to apply. Assign someone in your agency (maybe it's you!) to regularly check for funding releases. Check your online sources at least once each week, more often if an application release is imminent.

U.S. Department of Education Funding Forecast

About three weeks ago, the new funding forecast from the U.S. Department of Education was released. The forecast outlines the discretionary grant competitions the Department plans to fund for the coming year. It is not a legal document and it changes throughout the year, but it is extremely valuable if you want an idea of what grants might be coming your way and when they might be due.

As I mentioned, it's not always accurate. For example, last week the forecast said the application notice for the Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools grant would be out on December 15th. It wasn't. Now, it simply says, "TBD" for information on when the application will be available. So, you have to keep checking back for the latest information. By the way, the latest information will be available at the Department's website or on grants.gov anyway, but the forecast is still effective as an early planning tool.

And don't forget, the official notice of grant applications, rules, and funding criteria will be published in the Federal Register.

CA's Education Reform Stalled in the Senate

Bill SBX5 1 stalled in the Assembly Education Committee while alternative Bill ABX5 8 moves forward to the Assembly Floor.

A major education reform package aimed at reforming California Education Code to align with the Federal education reform mandates of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) failed to gain approval of the California Assembly Education Subcommittee.

Both SBX5 1 (Romero) and ABX5 8 (Brownley) would make key changes to California Education laws making the state eligible to apply for some of the nearly 4 billion dollars in ARRA funding through the Race to the Top (RTTT) program. The key differences in the bill reported by the SF Chronicle is the elimination of a strong parent choice component in SBX5 1 that would have allowed parents of children in Program Improvement schools to move their child to any school, anywhere in the state; and stronger regulations imposed on Charter Schools in ABX5 8.

ABX5 8 may be voted on today in special session. If approved, the bill would be sent to the Senate for confirmation. California has only until January 19th to submit grant for the first round of RTTT funding. Not all states will receive RTTT funding and it is a one-time grant to the states so there is a sense of urgency to get a “hat in the ring” before the money runs out.

Proponents of SBX5 1 denounced the elimination of parental choice and the imposition of regulations on Charter Schools concerned that the Assembly form of the bill makes California less competitive in the RTTT competition.

The Grant Goddess will continue watching this one for you!