<P>Are you afraid to write grants for your projects or you don't know how to prepare a grant application?<p>I am currently taking an online grant writing class that is very reasonably priced with a lot of instructor feedback.<p>To find out more about the A to Z Grantwriting class visit www.ed2go.com/secc<p>Once the page opens, click on online classes, followed by clicking on personal enrichment. Scroll down until you find the A to Z Grantwriting course. I believe the next round of classes start in August.<p>I have prepared 36 grant proposals over the past eight years, with 25 being funded totaling close to $1-million. I decided to take this class to learn some additional techniques to improve my grantwriting.<p>If you have been thinking about writing grant proposals for your projects, but don't know how, this class might help you get started.<p><br>




gn1355@aol.com

<P>Thanks for posting this information here...such a class would probably be a big help to many of us.<p>How do they handle the political side of grant writing? That is, grant writing has something in common with (oddly enough) getting one's novel published. In parallel universes, if a "name" writer submits his manuscript in one universe and an unknown writer submits the exact same MS in the other universe, the name writer gets his published and the unknown writer gets a rejection slip.<p>Unfortunately, grant writing often depends on which people on our board know which people on the foundation's board (directly or indirectly) etc etc. That's sort of the catcher in the rye on this matter. Two people can write the same good proposal, but politics will save one while scuttling the other. <p>None of which should keep us from writing the very best stuff we can write.<p>--Malcolm<br>




grinnellglacier@yahoo.com

<P>In my experience with grant writing, you must develop your proposal from your audience's side of things. The funder is your customer. They want to give money away to do good things. So they have a need (priority) which you must satisfy. And follow-up is the key.<p>Politics do enter into things to some degree. I don't see grant writing as political, but more competive than sports. People give money to people. Who you know is very important. Same with grants. You need to know who the program officers are and follow up with them on preparing your application or proposal. The program officer is your key contact. This person will school you on the boards' interests. You have to compete on the boards playing field of interests: youth, arts & culture, etc. RESEARCH IS THE KEY TO GRANT WRITING!<p>Another point I want to make is that the program officer may be the first person to evaluate your proposal. He/she makes the cut before it goes to the board for consideration. <p>This is why community awareness for your projects is important. A good communication/marketing plan along with your project plan is a good tool to have when preparing your grant application. I have found two things that are critical to our grants: marketability of the project and the ability of our organization to complete the project and meet our objectives.<p>A successful grant program averages about 10-15% of the proposals being funded. As competitive as grant writing is, you can spend more time on a special event and come away with less than if you would have spent time researching your potential funding sources and developing a grant proposal.<p>Like I said, I have found this online course to be very helpful. Prior to taking this course, I have prepared 35 grant proposals for our projects: GN 1355 Restoration and the Milwaukee Roundhouse. I have had 26 funded. Even though some would say I am very successful, I am learning an excellent system to improve upon.<p>I wish you luck.<p><br><br>




gn1355@aol.com

<P>Good points. . .all of them are things that need to be said from time to time on this message board and others where so many folks need money for so many important projects.<p>It's often difficult for any restoration team to see the human side of their project. They see a historic passenger car or locomotive and believe that the reasons for restoring it are obvious.<p>The prospective donor, whether an individual or foundation, wants to know the human side in many ways. Perhaps that starts, as you say, with knowing the interests of the donor and not asking them for money for projects they don't fund. More than that is knowing how/why/when people actually used the object or building to be restored and how that use plays into the larger sweep of history or technology, as well as what kind of impact that knowledge will have on the public when the come to see the results of the restoration. That is to say, what does the non-railfan learn from the object? The answer is probably not "nothing," but from the donor's perspective, it might as well be "nothing" if the project team and the grant writer cannot demonstrate the human importance of the work they are doing.<p>--Malcolm<p><br>




collections@srmduluth.org

<P>I definitely agree with you. It is very important that the grantwriter illustrates the commitment of the project team. In my experience I have found that when we approached our potential funder from their point of view, we were able to get funded even though they didn't know our organization. As rail preservationists, we must match our interests with the potential funders interests.<p>One thing that I have done to help with grant writing is to make a master document titled: public benefits and enhancements. I develop thesis statements to illustrate these benefits and enhancements and substantiate the thesis with facts from the project.<p>As an example: The Milwaukee Railroad Roundhouse will enhance educational opportunities for youth by providing a center of learning for railroad history. This proposal would be aimed at a foundation interested in youth.<p>Another example: The Railroad Museum will enhance an all-ready growing tourism market by encouraging extended-stay toursim in Sioux City. This proposal would be aimed at our local government in the economic development or community development arena.<p>You can see how we are matching our project to the funders area of interest. Providing public benefits is key to the long-term health of our preservation efforts. As we seek funding sources and vehicles to help our efforts we need to keep that in mind. But more importantly, we need to know ourselves what public benefits we are providing to our communities and stakeholders.<p>Malcolm, I checked out your website. It is fantastic.<p><br>




gn1355@aol.com