16 Jun

Posted at 21:59h in Competency Eight, Competency Five, Competency Four, Evaluation, Grant Reporting, Program Development, Relationships
Observation is a method to gather data by watching events or behaviors that can give information beyond what you can draw from numbers and is helpful in several situations:
  • To collect data that is unavailable through other methods. People are sometimes unable or unwilling to participate in surveys or interviews.
  • To understand an ongoing situation or process. For example, you want to identify efficiencies/inefficiencies in the process of college registration process as students meet with advisors to create a semester schedule.
  • To know more about a physical setting. For example, you want to determine if a residential rehabilitation center’s facilities are conducive to recovery.
  • To understand more about interactions. For example, you want to determine if a motivational guest speaker sparks interest in at-risk youth in a college preparatory program.

09 Jun

Posted at 18:00h in Competency Eight, Competency Five, Competency Four, Evaluation, Grants Management, Relationships
Have you been tasked with evaluating a program and don’t know where to begin? If so, you aren’t alone. Many people struggle with program evaluation. This new three-part series on evaluation will prepare you to design and implement a strong evaluation comprised of quantitative and qualitative data analysis. You will also understand how to secure a third-party evaluator, if you need one. This post focuses on how to conduct an environmental scan and needs assessment.

21 Jan

Posted at 18:00h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Competency Two, Culture, Organizational Development, Program Design, Relationships, Shauna O'Toole, Strategy
Have you encountered inefficiency, frustration, or even conflict when working with a group to develop a grant proposal? Take heart. This is normal. Most teams struggle and experience conflict before they begin performing at their peak. The Stages of Group Development framework, developed by Bruce Tuckman (1965) describes this process. This blog will briefly describe Tuckman’s framework and then apply these ideas to grant proposal development.

30 Oct

Posted at 23:34h in Competency Four, Competency Six, Consulting, Courses, Ethics, Ethics, GPCI Competencies, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, How-To, Michele Ryan

    Grant Ethics: Creating Ethical Grant Budgets and Sustainability Plans Session 6 of the Ethics Series For many organizations, a federal grant will be a significant expansion to an existing program or the initial funding for a program that does not yet exist. This can make the creation...

12 Oct

Posted at 10:58h in Competency Four, Competency Six, Competency Three, Consulting, Courses, Ethics, Ethics, GPCI Competencies, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, How-To, Leah Hyman

    Grant Ethics: Ethics for Grant Proposal Need Statements Session 4 of the Grant Ethics Series The way grant professionals describe the needs of their community is an important part of persuading reviewers and grant funders to award a grant. Which need is greatest and most aligned to...

02 Oct

Posted at 17:17h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Evaluation, Program Design, Program Development, Roxanne Jensen, ED. SPEC.
Grant writing evaluation is the systematic process of assessing the effectiveness and impact of your project or organization. Evaluation is not merely a formality but a critical aspect of the grant application process. Funders want to know that their investment will lead to positive outcomes and measurable results. Grantmaking organizations want assurance that their funds will be used wisely. A well-planned evaluation strategy showcases your commitment to being accountable for the resources you receive. While quantifiable metrics such as the number of people served are essential, they are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to grant evaluation.

24 Sep

Posted at 20:31h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Courses, GPCI Competencies, Partnerships, Tracey Diefenbach, Uncategorized

  Having Trouble Getting What You Need? Try Managing Up Session 5 of the Partnerships Series $50 | 60 minutes Enroll Now     Productive working relationships are a crucial, but challenging component in collaborative grant projects. Grant professionals are often tasked with bringing these partners together, which means addressing challenges, including...

11 Aug

Posted at 16:36h in Competency Four, Evaluation, Grant Reporting, Program Design, Roxanne Jensen, ED. SPEC.
Writing a successful grant proposal is a challenging task that requires careful planning, a clear vision, and a well-structured approach. Among the essential components of a grant proposal are goals, outcomes, outputs, and objectives. These terms are often used interchangeably or confused with one another, leading to misunderstanding on the funder’s part and potential rejection of the proposal. In this blog, we will delve into the distinctions between these concepts and explore their significance in the context of grant applications.

04 Jun

Posted at 16:46h in Competency Four, Inspiration, Roxanne Jensen, ED. SPEC., Writing
  Who says that playing with LEGO bricks is just for kids? Grant writing is like building with LEGO. Both grant writing projects and LEGO involve a process of building and assembling different pieces to create a coherent and structured outcome. They require a foundation, a solid structure, and precision. However, there is also a sense of creativity in the process. Many times, both grant writing projects require collaboration. Finally, there is the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when you complete the project.

30 Apr

Posted at 01:41h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Courses, GPCI Competencies, Grant Funding Basics, Grant Writing, How-To, Julie Alsup, Program Design, Uncategorized

    Evaluation and Logic Models Session 6 of the Grant Funding Basics Series Almost all grant funders ask what effect a program will have on the participants and how the organization knows of a program’s success. This session will teach the development professionals who write grants methods for defining...