Digital Arts Service Corps - fundraising

The DASCorps Survival Guide: Grant Writing

Bill Brown — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:58:31 +0000

Finding, writing, submitting, and winning a grant is not an easy task. It is time consuming, technical (not in the fun DASCorps sense), and complex. This section will try to break down some basics so you’ll know where to start and then go through the general steps towards receiving a grant.

If your workplan is or becomes heavily geared towards writing grant proposals, we strongly suggest that you ask your host organization to pay for you to take a grant writing course (usually offered online or at local colleges). You may even be able to get this paid for by Americorps using your IST funds.

Not all grants are created equal
There are many different kinds of grant opportunities out there from a variety of sources. These typically breakdown into government (federal, state, local) or foundation grant funding. Federal grants are much more time consuming and process driven than typical foundation grants, however they usually offer much larger funding and can fund an organization for several years.

What is an RFP?
RFP stands for Request For Proposals and generally means that a foundation is currently accepting grant applications for specific types of programs or organizations. Foundations also use RFP’s as a way to publicize new initiatives or programs sponsored or endorsed by the foundation. So do your homework to find out more on a foundation’s motives and new initiatives when they put out an RFP.

Planning
Before diving headfirst into a grant application, make sure you have these basic components already planned and organized:

Be able to explain the need for your project or program
Define your outcomes and how they will be measured (metrics)
How will you achieve these outcomes (methods)?
Demonstrate why your organization is the one to undertake this project or program (credibility)
How will you know when you’ve succeeded?
Generate a program or project budget
How will the program or project live on after the grant?

Optimally you will be matching a program that’s already been planned for to a grant opportunity. Unfortunately, sometimes organizations may look for a grant and then develop a program to fulfill that grant. Be careful as too often this leads to programs and projects that may be outside your organization’s mission and scope.

Finding Funders
Thankfully, researching funders and grant opportunities has been greatly simplified by many free online databases. Here a few of the best sites (see “Further Resources” at the end of this section for more grant databases):

Community Foundation Locator (www.cof/locator.org)
The Foundation Center (www.fdcenter.org)
FirstGov (www.firstgov.gov/Business/Nonprofit.shtml#fundraising)
Guidestar (www.guidestar.org)
The Grantsmanship Center (www.tgci.com)
The Philanthropy Journal (www.philanthropyjournal.org)

To make life easier on yourself and the people you have to communicate to about your grant writing undertaking, create a thorough spreadsheet that will detail all your potential funders, grant due dates, contacts, type of grant, etc…

Found The Grant! Now What?
As tempting as it is to jump in and start writing the grant, pause for a minute and give the funder a call. There may be a contact person or phone number listed for posted grants. Personal contact is a great jumping off point.

When you get someone on the phone, give a concise “elevator pitch” saying “Hi my name is ____ and I’m an Americorps*VISTA with insert organization name and I’d like to talk to you about insert program name and purpose.” If nothing else you won’t get an outright ‘no’ from someone (since it will probably be lower level staff), and it will help get your foot in the door.

Query Letter
The first formal part of a grant application is the Query Letter, which grant founders will use to invite you to submit the full grant proposal. The query letter runs approximately 2-3 pages and typically includes the following (which should already be documented in your pre-planning):

Organization’s name, what you are seeking funds for, and how much
Your organization’s mission, history, and current programs
Definition of the community need (who, what, and where)
How you’re going to address the need and measure its success
Any other supporters you have or will approach
Wrap-up, restate goals, and thank the funder

Writing the Full Proposal
So the funder has invited your full proposal after the query letter or you’ve been lucky enough to find a grant that does not require one. Now it’s time to write the full proposal.

It is monumentally important before you even put your organization down in the name box to take a good deal of time and THOROUGHLY go over the grant’s guidelines and requirements. Many VISTAs have been torpedoed by the tiniest oversights on a proposal that would have otherwise secured a grant.

Once you know the guidelines inside and out, it is finally time to start the full grant proposal. Below is a general list of all the pieces needed for a full grant application:

Title page and Table of contents
Executive summary
Background statement/Organizational qualifications
Statement of community need
Project’s large-scale goals
Project’s immediate objectives
Action plan
Timeline
Explanation of how you evaluate project’s success
Budget
Statement of how the project will be funded and sustainable into the future
Any and all relevant attachments

Here are some general tips when writing the full grant proposal:

Write with some passion and conviction
Communicate that your organization is the best one for the job (demonstrate that your organization IS an authority on what you are pursuing)
Be honest and realistic in what you plan to do with funds
Echo the funder’s key words and phrases in your application
Do not spend a lot of time on the introduction, as funders look more to solid program plans, evaluation methods, and budgets

Fundraising

Bill Brown — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:45:19 +0000

This area is for any and all resources related to Fundraising.

The goings on at Appalshop

Julia Taylor — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 02:07:16 +0000

Things are going much more smoothly around here since my last post/our last small group phone conversation. This is what is new:
-we got our Facilitation Guide printed and it's super pretty and is drawing a lot of attention!
-StoryLine, the web based story gathering project I'm doing has really begun to hit the ground running. We're getting calls into the skype line every week and I put them up on the website. I've also developed a partnership for Thousand Kites with the Guild of Outsider Writers. They are an online community of writers and are volunteering to read/record the poems we get from folks in the prisons. It's great.
(this is my big project, so it's exciting that it's actually going somewhere) People are starting to comment on the pieces, too, which is the goal.
-I was invited to attend a convening of grantees of the Nathan Cummings Foundation in NYC last week. With about 20 other organizations my boss Nick and I spoke about Appalshop and Thousand Kites and got to share ideas. I felt fairly young and inexperienced there, but it was a fantastic learning experience and I met some wonderful people in the art/social justice field.
-This weekend the gathering continued in Whitesburg when we brought 10 funders to come hang out here. It was wonderful. Yay fundraising strategies!
-next up is our big Calls From Home annual holiday call in radio show, which I'm doing a ton of outreach and organizing for.

Super busy time right now. It finally feels really good to be here.

Writing a Federal Grant: What to Expect

Meegan Kelly — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 21:43:27 +0000

WARNING! Federal grant applications are, by far, the most difficult and the most competitive type of proposal to write, even for veteran grant writers. They require more than 100 hours of work reading/understanding application requirements, researching and writing. On the other hand, if awarded, they are extremely beneficial to your organization, offering substantial, multi-year funding and credibility in future fund-seeking endeavors. The following is my advice after completing my first federal grant.

Step 1: Carefully read the announcements and rules in the Federal Register and application guidelines.

After reviewing the RFP, make sure that your organization's purpose, priorities and geographic region are compatible with the gov'ts announcement. Also, make sure you and your staff will have enough time to meet the deadline. Usually, the funder won't allow much time to complete these "bears" or "whales" or whatever gigantic and unforgiving animal you'd like to compare these grants to.

As far as completing the actual application, the guidelines are extremely specific and the reviewers will first examine your ability to comply with their technical requirements. Trust me, they will really make you jump through hoops. If you fail here...your application will not progress to the next level of review.

Step 2: Outline the process / time line you intend to follow for the project and share it with staff.

First, make a checklist with everything that needs to be done and which staff member is responsible for accomplishing it. This will give you a good idea of who you will be working closely with, and how much work you're personally responsible for.

Then, make a calendar for just the time you have until the deadline. It's also good to share this with staff. Pad your personal deadline to account for your reliance on "briskness" of your coworkers.

Also, plan to finish several work days before the deadline.

Step 3: Begin the information gathering process.

You will be expected to gather much of the same kinds of information for this grant, just like any other (organization history, mission, staff, accomplishments, goals of your project, etc). On the contrary, you will be asked to provide "documentation" for most of the arguments you make in your narrative. For instance, you may be asked to document the project's planning/development, or perhaps show evidence of the support of local residents.

Showing documentation and attempting to quantify benefits of the project/number of people affected by project is time consuming. I accomplished this task by sending out a survey to people in the community that would benefit from this grant. Once participants completed the survey and clicked "submit," the information was sent to my email box. I entered the data into a spreadsheet, and drew statistical information to support my project from it. I suggest this as a simple/quick solution. Below is a link to the survey I used, although I don't know how long my organization will keep it posted. Other ways to accomplishing this request include community meeting minutes and public forums.
http://main.nc.us/bbsurvey/

The rest of the information gathering process should be spent digging up buried information that you know you'll need. It involves contacting various departments within your org (finance, admin, etc) and stockpiling information you'll need for reference.

Note: Letters of support take a long time to coordinate and receive. They are necessary when applying for a federal grant. It is beneficial to solicit a letter of support from a state representative.

4. Seek a peer reviewer and don't be afraid to contact the Program Officer with your questions.

Peer review is an excellent opportunity to check over your work. If you know a fundraising professional who has written a grant before, make a copy of the application guidelines and your application. Give them a day or two to make some recommendations. I guarantee you'll sleep better after the grant is submitted if haven't relied solely on your own faculties.

Here are some links:
Catalog of Federal and Domestic Assistance - this site lists the federal gov'ts standard proposal review criteria. Click on "winning grant proposals" on the left side of the homepage.
E-Grants - the master directory for Federal grant information.
FirstGov - a federal site that is the gateway for all federal and state agencies that make grant awards.

Volunteer for Beer

Kelli Williams — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 14:28:26 +0000

At least that was what we were going to entitle our volunteer alert. Thought better of it at second glance. The Director of Teaming for Technology and I attended the John Mayer concert on Tue. night at our area's big amphitheatre to work a concession/vendor stand as a fundraising project. There was quite a process to be invitied, to host a stand, get certified to sell alcohol, etc. etc.--it took the better part of a month. We showed up excited and left dejected. It was chaos and we ended up not only not making money but losing it. We will not be going back for round 2! However, a very positive aspect of the adventure was the public recognition our project received. It was a great networking opportunity and we were right in front of our core market that we need/want to reach. And since we were holding beer they wanted we had their undivided attention. We had people come back all night long to buy from us because we had made a connection with them about where their money was going. So, from a marketing/community outreach project it was a slam dunk. Money, not so much.

On the home front, I am struggling to find the happy medium between two bosses. One, my immediate supervisor, understands that this is a "people" business and relationship building and face time are of the highest importance when you're getting ready to ask somebody for something. Her superior, while very nice and very understanding, does not seem to grasp this aspect of the non-profit sector. Having spent 30 years in the for-profit world might have something to do with the disconnect. We use Volunteer Solutions as a volunteer agency/opportunity management tool here. It is essentially a dead tool--is not being used and has not been used for close to 2 years. It is my assignment to revitalize the volunteer outreach that Triangle United Way does directed through Volunteer Solutions. I delivered my first synopsis of work last week at a staff meeting, on the day that marked my completed first month of service, and had quite a bit to report. My comments were that while I thought Volunteer Solutions was entirely capable of doing what was being asked of it, since it had not been used in so long I was going to have to be essentially doing its job for at least 6 months. I relayed the information and reactions I had received in my recent site visits to our member organizations in the last few weeks--all of which had been negative. The highlights from my meetings were that the TUW is "big brother" and has very little understanding of its agencies. I had to report that, from what I saw, those perceptions were true and it was going to take a lot of 'bridge building' on my part to the program directors and volunteers to get them back in the habit/mindset of turning to TUW and Volunteer Solutions for their needs. It's an uphill march, but I stressed that it is one that I think is not only worthwile and capable of being reached--it is essential for the namesake of Triangle United Way. So, I have a big job but I am encouraged by the support of my superiors (my colleagues will get there eventually) and the people I've met at our agencies. This is apparently an issue that has been tossed around for a few years without a solution, so, to quote one of my bosses "we went and got you." It's ok to be both flattered and scared by that comment, right?

Fundraising not so blues??

Tony ORourke — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 18:39:45 +0000

It is half way through our Summer Day Camp here in Tempe and we are super busy with kids here for 11 hours a day. I had to put my fundraising on hold for a bit. We were able to get 500 dollars, which I thought was my ceiling for my fundraising. It turned out to be more in the 700 dollar range. I got a new Computer Lab staff and he has being doing wonderfully with the kids. He has them building bridges with freeware software, shooting videos, learning about the environment, and all around just keeping the children engaged during a time of year which can be very hard. A couple of our teens attended a pilot program of ours called High Tech U. This is an oppurtunity for the kids to experiance some of the technology field with tours of local factories and learning hands on how to make silicon chips. It is an excellent opportunity for our teens to experiance some careers that might be available for them after they are finished with their education.

The fundraising blues

Tony ORourke — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:58:35 +0000

We held our first yard sale and it went ok. I am not sure this is the way to raise money for our computer lab. I have to figure out something quicker or at the very least more efficient. I put in at least 10 hours of work for 70 dollars worth of profit. I am open to any other ideas that you all might have.

Long time, No Blog

Denise Meise — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 22:43:03 +0000

Hello to all! It has been a very long time since I have blogged! Things here in Tennessee are going fine, although busy! I spent the entire month of December and most of February making fudge to raise money for the STAR Center. The fudge seems to be a very popular item, as well as a great gift to give or to receive. We raised about $15,000 with 2 fudge sales (one for Christmas and one for Valentine's Day). With each fundraiser, we included the option to have the fudge delivered to a person's home or place of business, and I recruited volunteers to help with delivery. For anyone who is interested, here is the recipe:

Heat 2/3 cup evaporated milk, 1 1/2 sticks butter or margarine, and 3 cups sugar over medium high heat, stirring constantly.

As the mixture begins to boil, set a timer for 4 minutes. After your 4 minutes is up, remove the mixture from heat. Stir in 2 cups chocolate chips until well mixed. Add 1 jar marshmallow cream and 1 tsp. vanilla, and stir until well blended (You have to work pretty fast because the fudge sets up quickly).

After all ingredients are mixed together well, pour the fudge into mold of your choice. If using small molds, the silicone ones work best. We made star-shaped for Christmas and heart-shaped for Valentine's Day. Instead of using small molds, you can also pour the fudge into a 13 x 9 inch pan and cut it into smaller pieces. After the fudge is completely set, remove from the molds and enjoy!

For another flavor variation, we made peanut butter fudge the same way but with peanut butter chips instead of chocolate. We also made white chocolate raspberry with white chocolate chips and raspberry flavoring in place of the vanilla.

Fundraising tips

admin — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 16:27:33 +0000

Initial Questions

Is there an existing donor base? (people who you have asked for or received money from the past)
Is there at least a database of everyone who has volunteered, produced programming, or been trained?
Is there any history of fundraising or events that have worked in the past?
How much are you looking to raise and in what time frame?
How many people will be helping with the effort and do you have access to more people to help?
Is there any fundraising plan already in place?

Now for suggestions!

Attached is one of the best lists of suggestions ever produced. The article is from the Grassroots Fundraising Journal – 53 Ways for Board Members to Raise $1000. This eliminates the “I don’t know how to fundraise” excuse. It is really one of the most realistic fundraising articles I have ever read and I have used it to great success many times over the years.

Have Board members host house parties. This works well in media organizations. The host invites 10 or so people over for dinner with an invitation that is clear about giving expectations. Have the ED and a producer attend. During dessert, show a video about the organization that clearly demonstrates why it is important. Have a conversation with the dinner guests about why local media is important. Make an ask. They should all have their checkbooks with them based on the invite, but have a simple pledge form ready. These can make $1000 to $5000 in a night with no organizational expense.

If you are a radio or cable access station and you run Democracy Now! schedule a time to produce a fundraising pitch with host Amy Goodman. She pitches like a mad woman for pledge drives on radio and TV stations that run the show. If you’re not with a media outlet that runs the show, you still might think about teaming up with a local outlet that does in order to bring her to your town for a fundraiser. Don’t forget the VIP reception after the public event.

If you get Amy Goodman from Democracy Now!, have someone to “interview” her for 15 or 30 minutes by phone. Have a few questions about why QU is important to the community ready, but she just knows how to go all by herself. Stand back and let her do it. Videotape the interview and edit with compelling DN! And QU footage while she pitches. Have a phone number that someone will be ready to answer and take pledges. Run said tape on Channel 27 in any available space until the oxide comes off. She will make phones ring.

Raffle a hybrid car. We used to do 1000 tickets at $50. The dealer gave us a whopping $1000 discount for the promotion, but we still made about $25k on the deal in about 60 days. Check raffle rules for your state before doing starting. With so few tickets people know their chances are good and the process moves quickly. QU pays for the car from the raffle proceeds after the winning ticket is drawn.

Find businesses that appoint a nonprofit to receive a percentage of sales for the week. Food coops, Buffalo Exchange, Wild Oats and others do this all the time. You’ll just have to convince them that you are worthy.

No matter what you decide to do, always think about the return on effort and investment. The cost of telethons can often outweigh what you’ll earn. But no matter what you do, collect the name and address of every single person who shows any support and thank them any way you can. And, of course, keep that name on file...

But, let me say more strongly than anything...nothing raises money like asking people. Every year, 80-85% of donations are made by individuals, either directly or bequest. Everything else – grants, government, corporations, events – totals a mere 15% give or take. What sector of the charitable world generates the most in donations? Churches...because they ask for a gift every week.

The main reason donors state when asked why they gave a gift was because they were asked.

Events are a crucially important part of a revenue mix. They bring people into your organization who may have never gotten involved any other way.

Grants not only provide larger cash infusions for specific efforts, they also provide additional credibility for the work of the organization.

But, ultimately, individual giving is where it’s at.
And it scares the bejesus out of your Board members to think about asking people for money. Get them started on the path to develop a culture where they feel comfortable telling someone why your organization is important and then asking that someone to consider a gift of $XXXX.

=== Finding Grants and Funding ===

'''[http://nationalserviceresources.org/epicenter/practices/index.php?ep_action=view&ep_id=963 Finding funding opportunities online]''' - This National Resource Center Effective Practice provides a broad oerview of websites and resources for searching for available grants and requests for proposals.

=== Books ===

[http://www.amazon.com/Only-Grant-Writing-Book-Youll-Ever/dp/0786711752 The Only Grant-Writing Book You'll Ever Need: Top Grant Writers and Grant Givers Share Their Secrets!]: A great catch-all guide for grantwriters. This is by far my favorite grantwriting book that is both practical, inspirational and with many examples of both good and bad grants and grantwriting practices (says Ben).
Kim Klein's book, "Fundraising for Social Change"

If the idea of houseparties is of interest, get the great how-to book by Morrie Warshawski, The Fundraising Houseparty:
How to Party with a Purpose and Raise Money for Your Cause. It is a bargain at $20. It’s a clear guide to making these parties work. Order it directly from him at http://www.warshawski.com/books.html

Read a review of the book at http://stepbystepfundraising.com/fundraising-houseparty

=== Fundraising Software Advice===
* '''NPower Seattle:''' [http://www.npowerseattle.org/education/resources/donor_toolkit.htm Donor Management Toolkit]
* '''Idealware:''' [http://www.idealware.org/articles/fgt_low_cost_dbs.php A Few Good Low Cost Constituent Databases]
* '''Social Source Commons''': [http://www.socialsourcecommons.org/search/query?q=fundraising&submit=Search "Fundraising" search] (look for tools that are in toolboxes as that means more people are using them)
* '''Idealware:''' [http://www.idealware.org/articles/ten_common_mistakes_in_selecting_donor_databases.php Common Mistakes in Selecting Donor Databases]
* '''Idealware:''' Offers several [http://www.idealware.org/online_seminars/ webinars around fundraising software]

=== Presentations ===
We got some great resources from the NTEN '07 Conference! Check out the attached presentations:
* Getting Started with Online Donation Tools
* Cross-Channel Fundraising Strategies
* Tips for Successful Person to Person Fundraising With Online Charity Badges

Work at CTOC

dana sou — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 17:06:24 +0000

So whats been going on at CTOC (community technology organizing consortium) since I started my Vista-ship back in November? Well, from November to the beginning of January I spent a lot of the time doing outreach for a Holiday event we held. That turned out to be a bit of a flop on attendance and I did feel like a bit of a failure to my organization but I got over it. I realized the causes of low attendannce were various...new event location, holiday season, etc. It was my first few weeks on the job so I wasn't too hard on myself. As soon as that was over we got a call from CTCNet to help with outreach for the Los Angeles institutes, as they were lacking in registration. So the week and a half long tasks of phone calls, e-mails, and e-vites began again. This turned out to be much much better. The CTCNet institute was quite interesting and informative. Unlike many of the CTCVista's I lack in being "tech savvy" so I never realized the capabilities of various software components and its ability to provide access to the disabled.

Amidst outreach calls and two events, I spent a lot of time reading up on broadband/technology issues - policies, capacity, its effects on society as a whole - and wow have I learned a whole lot about the need to address the various issues surroundung this! My supervisor has been great in sharing her knowledge with the issues- she really knows her stuff and has helped me a lot. I also work alongside ex-vista Sheveeta once a week so I'd have to say that I've got pretty good support going on here.

This week I've started some research on the broadband debate. I think I am going to be doing a mini-analyses on where the issue lies now and the importance of CTOC's position as a community and social advocate. Hopefully this will help us land some grants later on as we are lacking in funding as well.

If anyone has any leads as to where I can access reading material for my research i.e policies, debates, books, etc, that would be awesome. I seem to be only finding U.K websites that cover the issue in depth.

To summarize, I've done outreach for two events, familiarized myself with technology as a whole, thinking of ways to fundraise, and starting a mini research project, as well as manning the admin side to our office from time to time.

I really hadn't felt like I was doing a whole lot but now that I've written it all down I feel a little overwhelmed! : ) All good nontheless.