The ULTIMATE Grant Proposal Blueprint - Amazon S3...⁞ THE ULTIMATE GRANT PROPOSAL BLUEPRINT ⁞ ⁞ CHAPTER 1 ⁞ ⁞ PAGE 1 ⁞ The ULTIMATE Grant Proposal ... cover off your Grantsmanship

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⁞ THE ULTIMATE GRANT PROPOSAL BLUEPRINT ⁞ ⁞ CHAPTER 1 ⁞ ⁞ PAGE 1 ⁞

The ULTIMATE

Grant Proposal Blueprint:

CHAPTER 1

Starting Right Where You Are …

Right Now!

Lesson 1-A. Let’s Get This Party Started!

Lesson 1-B. The Power of Mission-Centered Grantsmanship:

Playing the Game … to Win!

Lesson 1-C. The Magic of the One-Page Worksheet:

Your Blueprint Template, Revealed

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What happens when I think

of myself as a “catalyst for

positive change in my work

… in my life … and in the

world”?

What could it mean to learn

about “writing better

proposals” from a 3-D

perspective?

REFLECT AND RESPOND:

What I’m passionate about:

Who I want to be in my

work life:

My “WAG” – Wild

Audacious Goal:

My best possible ROI:

Lesson 1-A.

Let’s Get This Party Started!

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NOTES:

NOTES:

PLUS one more way of seeing in 3-D view …

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

What will I need to achieve my biggest ROI from this course?

Let’s talk about 3-D…

Linear Omni-

directional

Tactical Relational

Fine detail Big-picture

Zoom IN Zoom OUT

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NOTES:

Myth: Tactical Relational Transcendent 1. It’s all about the

writing.

Write to impress. Write to

persuade. Write to get

what you want.

Write to express – not to

impress. Your writing

should be transparent – so

the beauty and strength

and power of your

proposal shine through

purely, clearing, and

compellingly. Nothing

should stand between the

reader and the great ideas

you want to

communicate.

It’s all about

communication and

connection – all the ways

that communicating with

transparency and

authenticity and intention

toward the greater good

helps us all stay connected

with that Bigger Thing

that’s always going on.

2. “It’s a competitive

process.”

Either you win, or you

lose. If someone else wins,

you lose – and vice versa.

You have to know how to

play the game.

Collaborating with other

nonprofits is not only

good for our community

and society as a whole, it’s

also the single most

powerful way to amplify

and accelerate our grants

success.

There’s already more than

enough of everything we

need to create the world

we want to see.

3. “Grantmakers love to

work harder than we have

to.”

??? That doesn’t even

make sense. Why does

how hard the grantmakers

work even matter? It’s

their job.

Grantmakers want to

work just hard enough to

be able to make an

intelligent, informed and

confident decision about

your proposal.

We’re ready to work as

hard as we need to –

together – as stewards of

the common good and

catalysts for positive

change, in our

communities and in the

world.

The three dimensions of grants perspective:

Tactical Relational

Transcendent

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LESSON 1-A.

Putting it into action – right away!

My Quick-Win Action:

What?

When?

Where?

With what resources?

Why? (in order to what?)

My High-Leverage Action:

What?

When?

Where?

With what resources?

Why? (in order to what?)

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WHAT DO YOU KNOW?

1. Mission, vision and values are no longer critical to a program’s

grantseeking success in these days of rapid change and flexibility.

T F

2. Planning for your grantseeking should begin with what grantmakers

are currently funding, not with what we need.

T F

3. If an organization is struggling to get grants, it’s almost always the

grantwriter’s fault.

T F

4. Which of the following is the single most important reason funders

choose to support a particular request for funding?

A. The proposal is well-written, neat, concise and clearly

organized, and interesting for the reviewers to read.

B. The applicant is a credible group or organization, with a

proven track record in the community.

C. The program or project plan is complete, detailed and easy for

reviewers to understand.

D. The purpose and objectives of the program you’re proposing

match the needs and interests of the funder.

E. The request provides enough detail about the program for the

reviewers to make informed, intelligent decisions.

F. You’ve followed all the funder’s instructions for the proposal –

number of pages, questions answered, attachments, and so

on.

Lesson 1-B.

The Power of Mission-Centered Grantsmanship:

Playing the Game … to Win!

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Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Grant Professionals Journal, Fall 2003 (www.grantprofessionals.org)

The Grantsmanship Game:

Playing to Win

By Maryn M. Boess

[email protected]

For a long time, one of the most popular

workshops I offer has been a two-day intensive

program we call “The Grantsmanship Game: Playing

to Win.”

The title always catches some people off-guard:

Some folks are a bit troubled by the notion of

comparing the hard work of managing a grants

process with playing a game. Shouldn’t we take

grantseeking more seriously than that? Isn’t

grantseeking just the simple activity of filling in

blanks on a funding application? Does thinking of

grantseeking as a “game” mean we’re in competition

with each other? Are we saying that we should be

having more fun?

In my 18 years of working as an active grant

professional – first as a program planner and

proposal writer, more recently in my work as a

trainer and coach – I have come to see clearly that

grantsmanship is not an activity; it’s a strategic,

systematic process. At GrantsUSA, we like to call the

process “The Grantsmanship Game.” It’s all about

managing the details of your organization’s

grantseeking effort in a way that gives your

proposals the winning edge – and helps them rise to

the top when funders make their grant awards.

It’s a serious game, to be sure: The well-being of

thousands of people can depend on the outcome.

But just like any game, it has several basic elements

that you need to consider, and learn to work with, in

order to win the game consistently.

In this article, we’ll offer a preview of what the

Grantsmanship Game is all about, and in future

issues of the Journal, we’ll take a closer look at what

it takes to become a more consistently successful

player.

“Unpacking” the Game

Basketball, checkers, Monopoly, hockey:

Different games, yes – but they do share some

important elements in common.

The Grantsmanship Game shares these elements

as well. Here’s what you’ll find when you pull the

cover off your Grantsmanship Game box:

A gameboard. The gameboard is the playing

field, or operating environment, in which the game is

conducted. The operating environment is always

unique to the game being played: It’s pretty tough to

play basketball on a checkerboard, or Monopoly in a

hockey rink.

In the grantsmanship game, the operating

environment includes your community, your

constituents, the regulatory and legislative

environment, the socioeconomic and political

climate of your community, even the culture and

values of your own organization. All of these factors

will significantly and dramatically influence the

shape of your grantseeking process – and the

strategies that will help you be most successful.

Rules. All games have rules. These are the non-

negotiable fundamental must-do’s and must-have’s

of a particular game. If you want to play the game,

you must agree to follow the rules. If you don’t

follow the rules, either you never get into the game

in the first place, or you find yourself “kicked off” the

gameboard and out of the game completely. More

about the five essential rules of the Grantsmanship

Game later.

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Moves, or squares. In many games, the players must

make their way around the gameboard by moving

through a sequence of squares, in some specified

order. The same is true in the Grantsmanship Game.

The moves or squares are the steps that players

must take to make progress toward the end goal. In

the grantsmanship game, the squares represent the

tasks or activities that are important to a complete,

rock-solid grants process. The moves don’t

necessarily have to be made in one-after-another

sequence – but no skipping allowed! If a “chance”

card (see below) jumps you backward or forward,

you must go back and make sure you take care of all

the steps you might have missed.

“Chance” cards. Guess what – we don’t control

everything! Monopoly has its “chance” cards – at

any given moment in a game, you can draw a card

that either propels you forward or sets you back

unexpectedly.

Grantseekers know this is true in their game, as

well. No matter how carefully we plan and how

conscientiously we follow the moves, the

unexpected can happen: A key staff person gets sick

just before deadline; a major partner pulls out;

another major source of funding comes through for

you, completely out of the blue. When the

Grantsmanship Game hands you a “chance” card like

one of these, the layout of the gameboard makes it

easier to figure out what you need to do to get back

on track and back in the game.

A “winner’s” goal. Most games have a clear-cut

starting point; not all have a clear-cut end.

Monopoly is one example: The game can go on and

on until there’s only one player left standing. The

Grantsmanship Game is another example. It’s

actually a cyclical game: Once you’re on the

gameboard, you keep playing as long as you like,

cycling through the same rules and the same steps

over and over again, only with different corporate,

foundation and government funders each time. The

game is “won” each time the process succeeds in

producing a solid grant proposal that reflects your

organization’s very best efforts – one that represents

your mission as a service organization, and at the

same time connects with the philanthropic mission

of the grantmaker.

Strategies. Finally, it isn’t enough to simply be

familiar with the gameboard and have memorized

the official, non-negotiable rules. To be truly,

consistently, predictably successful in any game over

time, we must also have practical knowledge about

how to apply effective strategies. These are the skills

and understandings we bring to the game that

dramatically affect how efficiently and successfully

we address the challenges and decisions that arise as

we navigate the gameboard.

Many of the top strategies for the

Grantsmanship Game are ones we learn over time,

through experience. But I maintain that we all start

out with three of the most important strategies in

our skill bank. These are:

• Common sense (surprising how quickly our

ability to apply common sense becomes

threatened when money is at stake!);

• Good people skills (another surprise:

contrary to many opinions, grantsmanship is

a people-driven process, not a paper-driven

one); and

• A team- or partnership-oriented mindset

(about which more later).

Rules of the Game

The Grantsmanship Game is different every time

it’s played, because the specifics of each funder’s

priorities, needs and interests are different. But

there are five basic rules that drive the game and

keep you in control of the process. These are:

Rule 1: Know Yourself.

This rule speaks to the heart of the matter,

which I call mission-driven grantsmanship. Success in

grantseeking begins at the beginning: With a deeply

held, common understanding of who you are as an

organization, what you’re here to do in the world,

and why it’s important. “Deeply held” means this

understanding is the foundation of everything you

do as an organization. “Common” means all the

stakeholders are marching under the same banner –

program staff, administrative staff, board members,

volunteers. Focus first on clearly, concisely and

compellingly telling your organization’s story and

articulating your mission, vision and values. Then

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and only then will you be prepared to share that

story with potential funders.

Rule 2: Build True Partnerships.

A Federal program officer said it loud and clear a

few years back: “Whether the funder requires it or

not, if it ain’t a collaborative proposal, it ain’t gonna

be competitive.” It’s all about leveraging. How can

you work with other members of your community to

share resources, responsibilities, risks and rewards?

The emphasis here is on the word “true.” Funders

aren’t fooled by a “partnership” that consists of a

slapped-together list of names with no sense of

commitment or shared vision behind it. The best

partnerships begin before there’s money on the

table, because two or three or four people from

different organizations recognize an opportunity to

work together for the greater good of each other –

and the community at large.

Rule 3: Plan, Plan, Plan – Plan!

Did you know that only 20% of a successful

grantseeking effort involves actually writing the

proposal? The other 80% consists of – you guessed it

– planning. A solid grant proposal is nothing more

than a business plan, plain and simple. You wouldn’t

go to a bank for a loan without a business plan in

place; nor should you approach a prospective funder

with anything less than a complete, detailed

blueprint for how you see your program or project

working. The planning should take place before you

begin assembling a request for a particular funder. In

other words, develop your own business plan first –

then you can draw from it and tailor it to fit any

grantmaker’s required form and format.

Rule 4: Know Your Funder.

Ah, at last – we’re getting down to the nitty-

gritty. “Know Your Funder” speaks to the issue of

doing your homework – of using the appropriate

resources to identify your A-list of grantmakers most

likely to be interested in what you have to offer, and

then of finding out everything you can about who

they are, what they’re looking for, and what they

hope to achieve with their grantmaking – before you

decide whether to submit a proposal. All other

factors aside, the single most important reason

funders choose to support a given request for

funding is that what the applicant has to offer helps

the funders achieve their own mission and purpose in

the world. An additional word of wisdom: The best

time to begin a relationship with a prospective

funder is not two days before the proposal is due.

Rule 5: Create a Winning Proposal.

This is where it all comes together, at last. What

is a “winning” proposal? Well, getting funded is a

good indicator here – but there’s more to it than

that. Whether or not a given proposal is chosen for

funding depends on a lot of considerations that are

outside the grantseeker’s direct control. For me, the

definition of a “winning” proposal focuses on four

qualities that we can control. These are:

(1) It’s in on time. No ifs, ands, or buts. If there’s

a deadline, and you don’t meet it, nothing else

matters. End of subject.

(2) It crosses all the t’s and dots all the i’s.

Whatever instructions or qualifications the funder

holds for the proposal, you’ve paid attention to each

and every one of them. Otherwise you run the risk of

becoming an “easy out,” as in: “Oops, look, we asked

that proposals be submitted unbound, and this one’s

stapled. Well, that’s one more proposal we won’t

have to bother reading.”

(3) The proposal clearly represents the front end

of a well-thought-out business plan. This relates

directly back to Rule #3 and calls on us to make sure

all the questions have been answered, all the pieces

are in place, and everything holds together and

makes sense.

Finally, the kicker:

(4) Your proposal makes it very clear how

supporting your proposal will help the funder further

its own philanthropic mission. Guess what:

Grantmakers need us – they can’t fulfill their

philanthropic missions for creating change in the

world without the programs and services that we

offer. Our proposals succeed to the extent that we

can demonstrate this all-important match with the

funder’s own mission.

The Rule of Common Sense

There’s one other non-negotiable rule to success

in the grantsmanship game – and that’s what I call

the Rule of Common Sense. We mentioned this

earlier, as part of our discovery of the

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Grantsmanship Game process, but it bears looking at

again. All other things being equal, we can rely on

our own innate common sense – the same good

thinking skills that have helped us be successful in

other areas of our life – to guide us through much of

the Grantsmanship Game’s murkier territories.

As you’re moving around the gameboard, ask

yourself almost any question – for instance:

(1) The page limits are so strict; should I

eliminate headings and bulleted lists to save space?

(2) I wonder if the funder would like to see a

description of our partnership efforts, even if it isn’t

required?

(3) I don’t understand this instruction; what do

they really want here?

(4) We don’t fit their guidelines but they’re new

in our community and doing a lot of local funding.

Shouldn’t we send a proposal too?

Then ask yourself: What would common sense

dictate? The answers will be, in this order:

(1) How would you like it if you were the

reviewer struggling through 300 proposals that were

nothing but paragraph after paragraph of solid black

unbroken text?;

(2) Sure, wouldn’t you?;

(3) Don’t guess or second-guess – call the funder

and ask; and

(4) Nope! (though you may want to begin a

“feeling-them-out” relationship in case they open up

their funding priorities).

See? That wasn’t so tough. Common sense wins,

virtually every time. Hang on to yours, as tightly as

you can. You’ll encounter plenty of fellow players

along the way who will try to wrest your common

sense from you, in the name of chasing the money.

Don’t let them. Trust the good judgment that has

brought you this far. It can take you all the way.

A Final Word About “Fun”

At the beginning of our “Grantsmanship Game”

workshop, as a warm-up I often ask people what

associations they can make between the words

“grantsmanship” and “game.” Most of the answers

are pretty predictable: They’ll come up with rules,

and players; money (if they’re thinking about

Monopoly); competition; and winning. Rarely, a lone

voice will raise tremulously in the back of the room,

as if almost embarrassed to speak out: “What about

fun? I think working on grant proposals is fun. Am I

crazy?”

Yes, you are – crazy like a fox. After all, enjoying

what we do is what puts the zip in our work, keeps

us coming back, keeps us wanting to do more, do

better, stretch and grow. The great thing is, it works

the other way around, too: The better we are at

doing something, the more we’re likely to enjoy

doing it.

And – guess what! The more we all win, too.

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RULE 1:

Know Yourself

Connecting Purpose and Planning

MISSION STATEMENT:

Your organizational

mission statement is

a deeply held, common

understanding of

who you are as an

organization,

what you’re here to do

in the world,

and why that work is

important.

MISSION-CENTERED GRANTSMANSHIP:

Mission-centered grantsmanship involves

a specific set of tools and techniques that,

when installed properly within your

organization and applied systematically

and strategically, will help you

and your stakeholders become

more consistently successful in

attracting the resources your organization

needs to do its work in the world.

REALITY CHECK: Which of the following statements is MOST true about your organization’s mission

statement?

� “As far as I know, we don’t have one.”

� “We have one, but I couldn’t tell you what it is.”

� “We have one, but it’s pretty out of date.”

� “We’re working on our first one.”

� “Ours is clear, universally understood, and current.”

WORKING DEFINITIONS

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THE MISSION-VISION-VALUES TREE

PROGRAMS

& SERVICES

PROGRAMS

& SERVICES

PROGRAMS

& SERVICES

PROGRAMS

& SERVICES

PROGRAMS

& SERVICES

VISION • Where do we see ourselves in five years? Ten years? Fifty years?

• If we were doing exactly what we are meant to do in exactly the right way, what would we be doing, and how?

VALUES What’s important to us about the way we:

• Serve our clients and constituents?

• Work with other community members?

• Work with our colleagues and staff?

• Present ourselves to the world at large?

ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS

AND OBJECTIVES

� What are our long-term goals and objectives for the organization as a whole?

� Do these goals and objectives grow naturally from and support our mission, vision and values?

� How do these overall goals and objectives help us determine what activities, projects, and services we should be undertaking?

MISSION • Who are we? Why do we exist?

• What do we do best?

• Who do we serve?

• What are our unique contributions to

• the world?

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Great news! Your favorite fairy godmother has just granted you a check for $10,000! You can use the money for

anything that will benefit your organization. How many ways could you (and your team) spend your windfall?

FAIRY GODMOTHER WISH LIST

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Please help us decide what projects or services to focus on in searching for funding! Each of the following ideas

has been suggested as a possible change, enhancement, addition or expansion for our agency, if resources were

available. Please prioritize all ideas in terms of their relative importance for our agency.

On a scale of 1 (high) to 5 (low), rank the degree to which you believe each of the ideas:

• Is congruent with and/or advances the mission of our organization;

• Is urgent (i.e., has a critical time frame; vital that it be undertaken sooner rather than later);

• Is important (i.e., potential for major long-term impact on our operations or services).

Priority or Resource Wish List Item:

Mission

Match Urgency

Impor-

tance

Over-

all

PRIORITIZING OUR PROJECT/RESOURCES WISH LIST

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Turning Good Ideas into “Fundable Project Concepts”

“FUNDABLE PROJECT CONCEPT”:

What Is It?

� Very brief – 1-2 pages

� Written preliminary plan

� Answers the key planning questions

� Can be read in 4 to 5 minutes – TOPS

Decision-maker’s response:

“This is exactly what we’re looking for.

You’ve covered all the bases.

It’s clear you know where

you’re going with this.

I’m eager to find out more.”

The One-Page Proposal Worksheet – Revealed!

“When it comes to

transforming good ideas

into fundable project

concepts, this worksheet

is the closest thing available

to a magic wand.”

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LESSON 1-B.

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With this grant, it is our

intention that:

� Who is going to do

what?

� When?

� Where?

� With whom?

� With what resources?

� To accomplish what

results? And …

� Why is it important?

WHAT DO YOU KNOW?

1. Grantmakers require a considerable amount of detail in order to

make an informed, intelligent decision about your request.

T F

2. Each grantmaker works with its own unique priorities, interests, and

guidelines – making it impossible to predict what questions you’ll be

required to answer in your proposals.

T F

3. 80% of effective grantsmanship is writing; only 20% is planning. T F

4. BONUS QUESTION: What do you think is the absolute most a funder

would award on the basis of a one-page grant proposal?

___________

READY, SET … GO!

Lesson 1-C.

The Magic of the One-Page Proposal Worksheet:

Your Blueprint Framework – Revealed!

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The One-Page Proposal Worksheet: Notes

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THE ONE-PAGE GRANT PROPOSAL WORKSHEET IN ONE SENTENCE,

summarize your project

idea. What will you do? When? With whom? Where? And why? In order to what?

Who are you as an

organization, and what are you all about? (What is your

mission or purpose?)

Describe the specific need or issue in your community

that this proposed project will address.

What specific changes do you intend to achieve in your community as a direct result

of your work? What will success “look like”?

What are the major steps

you will need to take to make these changes

happen?

Who else has a vested interest in working with you as partners on this problem

or opportunity?

What information, tools, data, etc. will you use to

decide how well you met your success goals?

What resources do you need to do this work? (Skills, labor, equipment, training,

supplies, services, etc.)

Estimated total cost (if you had to pay for every-thing).

How does this break down?

What broad categories of community needs or

opportunities does your

project address?

Submitted By: Date:

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

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THE ONE-PAGE GRANT PROPOSAL WORKSHEET IN ONE SENTENCE,

summarize your project

idea. What will you do?

When? With whom? Where?

And why? In order to what?

By March 20--, Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County (WA) will train 50 new reading tutors to serve the rural communities to the west, working with

volunteers recruited from local churches, to reduce the waiting list for literacy

training in this underserved area.

Who are you as an

organization, and what are

you all about? (What is your

mission or purpose?)

Literacy Volunteers of “Our County” (WA) is a 35-year-old, volunteer-based 501c3 nonprofit whose mission is to empower adults with the ability to read and write, in order to achieve their full potential as individuals, as employees, as

parents, and as members of the community at large.

Describe the specific need

or issue in your community

that this proposed project

will address.

According to a 2010 survey by Literacy Volunteers of America, one out of six

adults cannot read or write at the basic sixth-grade level, leaving them

vulnerable to problems with parenting, employment, health, safety and self-esteem. And in the rural western half of “Our County” alone there is a waiting

list of 200 adults who want to learn to read.

What specific changes do

you intend to achieve in your

community as a direct result

of your work? What will

success “look like”?

1. Train and successfully match 50 new volunteers.

2. At least 75% of students will complete 6 months of tutoring. 3. Reading skills will improve an average of 2 grade levels. 4. At least 3 significant partnerships with local churches.

5. Reduce waiting list by at least 40 individuals.

What are the major steps

you will need to take to

make these changes

happen?

1. Contract with master trainer.

2. Training logistics: Materials, location, equipment. 3. Marketing to recruit potential volunteer tutors. 4. Conduct training.

5. Match and track tutor/learner pairs for 6 months. 6. Evaluate learner progress and program success.

Who else has a vested

interest in working with you

as partners on this problem

or opportunity?

Local churches Schools

Libraries Service clubs--?

What information, tools,

data, etc. will you use to

decide how well you met

your success goals?

Pre- and post reading evaluations of learners

Training logs of volunteer tutors

What resources do you

need to do this work? (Skills,

labor, equipment, training,

supplies, services, etc.)

Master trainer Training materials

Audiovisual equipment

Training site (+ refreshments?)

Estimated total cost (if you

had to pay for every-thing).

How does this break down?

$25,000

$500 per volunteer trained, matched and tracked

What broad categories of

community needs or


project address?

Literacy Parenting skills Reading Workplace skills

Adult education Minority issues

Rural Church-affiliated

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

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The One-Page Proposal Worksheet: Notes

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LITERACY VOLUNTEERS OF “OUR” COUNTY, WASHINGTON

TUTOR TRAINING PROGRAM FOR RURAL COUNTY

OVERVIEW:

One out of six adults in the United States today cannot read or write at the basic sixth-grade level, leaving them

vulnerable to problems with parenting, employment, health, safety and self-esteem. The problem is especially

acute in rural communities, where the rate of adult illiteracy rises to nearly one in five.

Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County (WA) seeks $25,210 in funding from the local community to support the

training of 50 additional volunteers to serve as reading tutors in the hard-to-serve rural communities in the

western portion of the county, where there is a waiting list of nearly 200 people who want to learn to read. We

have already begun working with churches in the proposed service community to develop recruitment

partnerships, by which we will recruit our new volunteers from among the churches’ membership. Churches will

also support the training by providing training facilities, necessary audiovisual equipment, etc. Volunteers will

receive 24 hours training and full certification as Literacy Volunteers Reading Tutors and by March 20 will be

matched with adult learners who want to improve their reading skills.

The tutor-learner pairs will work together a minimum of 2 hours per week for six months, with support and

monitoring from Literacy Volunteers staff. On average we expect to see an improvement of two grade levels in

the reading skills, as measured by reading assessments administered at the beginning and end of the six-month

period. The total value of volunteers’ contributed time as reading tutors over the six-month project is $72,000,

which will be leveraged as the trained tutors continue their volunteer service beyond the six-month period.

ABOUT LITERACY VOLUNTEERS OF “OUR” COUNTY:

Over the past 54 years, Literacy Volunteers, a nonprofit volunteer organization, has earned its reputation as the

nation’s leading community-based resource for adults who read at or below the sixth grade level and want to

improve their reading skills. Literacy Volunteers beneficiaries rely on our innovative and diverse approaches to

reading learning to support their own goals for reading improvement and to meet the requirements of their

unique life circumstances and cultural values. The most well-known and still most valued approach is our one-

on-one tutoring, which matches learners with trained volunteer reading tutors; others include community-based

classrooms, computer labs, and at-home individual learning resources. By 2010, the network of Literacy

Volunteers branches had grown to more than 260 nationwide, serving an estimated 110,000 adult reading

learners each year.

SAMPLE MASTER PROPOSAL BLUEPRINT

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Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County joined the Literacy Volunteers network in 1963 as a grassroots effort of a

small group of dedicated library volunteers. From its humble beginnings, LVOC has grown to comprise more

than 1,200 active volunteers who collectively devote some 18,000 hours each year to literacy service. Our

computer learning lab was one of the first of its kind in the nation, serving as a model for other Literacy

Volunteer groups nationwide. In 2009, nearly 150 adults improved their reading skills an average of two grade

levels through LVOC’s services.

Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County receives no government or United Way funding, and is supported solely

through the generosity of local individuals, companies and foundations. LVOC pays no fees or dues to the

national Literacy Volunteers headquarters, so all funds donated to LVOC support students and schools in our

local communities.

THE NEED:

As hard as it may be to believe, at least one out of six adults in the United States today cannot read or write at

the basic sixth-grade level, leaving them vulnerable to problems with parenting, employment, health, safety and

self-esteem.

In 2010, a study conducted by the ABC Institute confirmed that fully X% of all adult Americans over the age of 25

are functionally illiterate – that is, they cannot read or write well enough to perform basic, day-to-day functions

such as reading instructions on medication, reading notes from their children’s teacher, or filling out job

applications. Other studies have shown that, compared with adults who can read at or above the minimum

level, adults who are functionally illiterate:

• Are X times more likely to be unemployed (Delta Institute, 2007);

• Are X times more likely to be involved in accidents in the home and workplace (Reading Matters,

published by the U.S. Department of Labor, 2009);

• Spend X fewer hours per week talking with their children about school or helping with homework (U.S.

Department of Education statistics, 2006); and

• Have children who are X times more likely not to complete their own 8th-grade education (Summit on

Literacy, Literacy Volunteers of America, 2005).

The issue of adult illiteracy cuts across all traditional boundaries of income, social status, ethnicity, national

origin – even employment and education levels. The illiterate adult looks much like you or me. X% of functionally

illiterate adults are parents with children under 18. X% work full-time; X% are unemployed. Studies have shown

that the inability to read and write is an intergenerational issue, too: When a parent is illiterate, the children are

at substantially higher risk for educational failure and illiteracy themselves.

Washington follows the national rate of 1 out of 6 functionally illiterate adults. That means that, in Parker

County alone, more than XX,000 workers, parents, and citizens cannot read or write at the sixth grade level. The

problem is compounded in the rural communities outside the major metropolitan areas, where the rate of adult

illiteracy rises to nearly 1 in 5.

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The 50 adults served by this project will receive the one-on-one tutoring they need in order to increase their

reading at least two grade levels. Their children will benefit, too, as the parents begin to appreciate their own

education and support their children’s academic achievement. And the community will benefit as the new adult

readers have greater opportunities to reach their full potential as productive, contributing members of society.

INTENDED OUTCOMES:

The overarching purpose of this proposal is to provide training for 50 new volunteer tutors, who will then be

matched with adults in the hard-to-serve rural communities who want to learn to read. Specific outcomes we

are targeting through this project are as follows:

1. Partnership and Outreach: By July 20--, LVOC will have firm commitments from at least three churches

in the target community to work with us as recruitment sources for prospective volunteer tutors, as

measured by signed Letters of Agreement secured from the churches’ boards of trustees.

2. Completion of Training: By September 20--, 50 new volunteers will have completed training as reading

tutors and will be ready to be matched with adult learners on our waiting list for services, as measured

by participation records and scores on the reading tutor certifying exam.

3. Learner Retention: At least 75% of the adult learners who are matched with the new reading tutors will

complete the full 6 months of weekly tutoring, as measured by weekly tutor logs and retention records

maintained by Literacy Volunteers administration.

4. Improved Reading Skills: After six months of one-on-one tutoring, 75% of the adult learners served by

this project will have improved their reading and writing abilities by at least two grade levels, as

measured by their scores on the Lumbard Literacy Evaluation Scale administered at the beginning and

the end of the six-month period.

PLAN OF ACTION:

Although the focus of this request for funding is to support the actual on-the-ground training of our 50

prospective new reading tutors, the real impact of this project comes when the new tutors are matched with

their adult-learner partners and begin their work together over the next six months. Our plan of action, then,

addresses not only the logistics of providing the training, but also the support provided by Literacy Volunteers of

“Our” County to the tutor-learner pairs during the initial six months of their partnership.

Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County has extensive experience in training enthusiastic volunteers to be successful

reading tutors, and in providing support to assure our students’ success. Drawing on our success in training and

supporting more than 330 tutor-learner pairs over the past four years alone, our work plan is as follows:

Contract with master trainer. Sally Walton, our Volunteer Training Coordinator, will contract with one of the

three master tutor trainers provided by the regional affiliate to offer the volunteer training. This contract will be

in place no later than May 15, 20--.

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Marketing to recruit potential volunteer tutors. Because we have targeted a community that has traditionally

proved hard to serve, our strategy involves recruiting volunteers from among the community members

themselves. We are eager to partner with local churches as recruitment sites for our volunteer tutors.

• John Robbins, our coordinator of volunteer services, will develop partnership relationships and secure

Letters of Partnership Commitment from three churches in the rural West Valley before the anticipated

funding award date, working with personal referrals of prospective partner churches and a regional

church directory.

• John and Sally will both work closely with the churches to host special presentations or “volunteer fairs,”

post notices and posters, and other methods for engaging the interest and commitment of prospective

volunteers from among the church members.

Training logistics: Materials, location, equipment. For the convenience of the volunteers, the tutor training

sessions will be held at their home churches on three successive Saturdays, from 8:30 am to 5 p.m. each. Our

church partners will be expected to provide a VCR and overhead projector; all other materials will be provided

by LVOC. The local Kiwanis Club has agreed to copy participant workbooks and certification tests, and The Bank

of the West will provide continental breakfasts and box lunches for the volunteer trainees.

Conduct training. Each volunteer will receive a total of 24 hours of training. This includes 4 hours of supervised

“practicum” coaching another participant in reading skills. It also includes a two-hour assessment exam. All

training materials and the assessment exam are from the national Literacy Volunteers headquarters.

Match and track tutor/learner pairs for 6 months. LVOC provides solid ongoing support to our volunteer tutors

as they meet weekly, for about two hours each week, with their matched student learners.

EVALUATION:

There are many measures of “success” in a reading program, including heightened self-esteem, improved job

opportunities, and stronger parenting skills. However, our key measure of success is the degree to which our

learners do in fact improve their ability to read and write. This is rigorously assessed by the Lumbard Literacy

Evaluation Scale; a verified test instrument that measures the grade-level of an individual’s reading skills.

Students will be given the LLES before they begin their tutoring, and again at the end of six months. The result

will be a clear comparison of their baseline reading abilities and the level at which they read after six months of

one-on-one tutoring. These results are reported to the LVOC board of directors on a quarterly basis, and will be

reported to our funders regularly as well. Experience over time has demonstrated that students completing the

six months of 2 hours/weekly tutoring improve their reading skills an average of two full grade levels.

BUDGET:

The overall organizational budget for Literacy Volunteers of “Our” County for FY20-- is $350,000. This does not

include the more than $600,000 in value of services provided by our volunteers.

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The budget for this special tutor training initiative to serve the rural West Valley is $25,210. This is just over $500

for each of 50 volunteers trained, matched and for the full six months, which has proven to be a consistent cost

average over the past five years.

Value of In-Kind Goods and Services:

• The grant budget does not include the value of anticipated in-kind support (donated training site,

audiovisual equipment, additional printing services, refreshments, and additional recognition/team-

building items) with an estimated value of $2,500.

• The total value of the volunteers’ actual services as reading tutors over the six-month tutoring period is

conservatively estimated at $72,000, calculated as follows:

o 50 tutors, at 2 hours/week x 24 weeks, valued at $30/hour (market rate for trained individual

reading tutor) = $72,000.

• The $25,210 grant investment will be further leveraged as many of the 50 new volunteer tutors will

continue their volunteer service beyond the six-month commitment of this grant.

A detailed budget for the project period follows.

PROJECT BUDGET – July 1, 20— through February 28, 20--

ITEM DESCRIPTION/CALCULATION: Grant Request

Salaries & Wages: LVOC staff support (volunteer service coordinator, outreach

coordinator): 100 hours each = 200 hrs at $30/hour (including EREs)

$6,000

Contract labor: Master trainer, $3,000 per three-week training x 3 = $15,000 $9,000

Materials: Purchase of proprietary training materials, 50 sets x $25 each $1,250

Materials: Purchase of tutor-support materials, 50 kits @ $25 each $1,250

Travel: Reimbursement of staff travel est. 1,200 total miles x $0.55 = $660

Travel: R/T airfare and lodging for master trainer, 3 trips @ $500 each $1,500

Travel: Reimburse volunteer tutor mileage to/from training and to/from tutoring

assignments at $0.55/mile: Estimated 100 mi x 50 tutors

$2,750

Office support/incidentals: Covers postage, office supplies, and phone/Internet in

support of project activities. Historic costs= $200/month x 9 months

$1,800

Recognition/Team-building: T-shirts and visors for volunteers – 50 x $20 $1,000

TOTAL GRANT BUDGET: $25,210

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From www.MindMapping.com:

Mind mapping is a highly effective way of getting information in and out of your brain. Mind mapping

is a creative and logical means of note-taking and note-making that literally "maps out" your ideas.

All Mind Maps have some things in common. They have a natural organizational structure that radiates

from the center and use lines, symbols, words, color and images according to simple, brain-friendly

concepts. Mind mapping converts a long list of monotonous information into a colorful, memorable

and highly organized diagram that works in line with your brain's natural way of doing things.

One simple way to understand a Mind Map is by comparing it to a map of a city. The city center

represents the main idea; the main roads leading from the center represent the key thoughts in your

thinking process; the secondary roads or branches represent your secondary thoughts, and so on.

Special images or shapes can represent landmarks of interest or particularly relevant ideas.

The Mind Map is the external mirror of your own radiant or natural thinking facilitated by a powerful

graphic process, which provides the universal key to unlock the dynamic potential of the brain.

The five essential characteristics of Mind Mapping:

• The main idea, subject or focus is crystallized in a central image.

• The main themes radiate from the central image as 'branches'.

• The branches comprise a key image or key word drawn or printed on its associated line.

• Topics of lesser importance are represented as 'twigs' of the relevant branch.

• The branches form a connected nodal structure.

BONUS LESSON.

… And Now, a Few Words About Mind-Mapping …

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2. Who are you as an

organization, and what

are you all about? (What

is your mission or

purpose?)

__________________________________________________________________________________________


3. Describe the specific

need or issue in your

community that this

proposed project will

address.

__________________________________________________________________________________________


4. What specific changes or

outcomes do you intend to

achieve in your community as

a direct result of your

project? What are your

“success indicators”?

__________________________________________________________________________________________


5. What are the major

steps you will need to

take to make these

changes happen?

__________________________________________________________________________________________


6. Who else has a vested

interest in working with

you as partners on this

problem or opportunity?

__________________________________________________________________________________________


7. What information, tools,

data, etc. will you use to

decide whether your

project succeeded?

__________________________________________________________________________________________


8. What resources will you

need to accomplish these

steps? (People, equipment,

materials, training, supplies,

services, etc.)

__________________________________________________________________________________________


1. IN ONE SENTENCE,

summarize your project idea.

What will you do? Where?

With whom? When? And

why?(in order to what?)

__________________________________________________________________________________________


10. What broad categories of

community needs or


project address? (Think in terms

of general labels or frames)

__________________________________________________________________________________________


LESSON 1-C.

The ULTIMATE Grant Proposal Blueprint - Amazon S3...⁞ THE ULTIMATE GRANT PROPOSAL BLUEPRINT ⁞ ⁞ CHAPTER 1 ⁞ ⁞ PAGE 1 ⁞ The ULTIMATE Grant Proposal ... cover off your Grantsmanship

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