Grants 201: Creating an Effective Budget Narrative Session 6 of the Grants 201 Series A budget is a key element of most grant proposals and serves as a blueprint for spending the project’s funds. An effective proposal budget outlines the proposed project in fiscal terms and helps reviewers...

  Grants 201: Logic Models for Program Planning Session 5 of the Grants 201 Series You don’t have to love them, but you do have to respect them because logic models are a dynamic tool for program planning, evaluation planning, monitoring, and coalition building. Many funders require them, and...

  SESSION 4 of the FEDERAL GRANTS SERIES Price: $150 The fourth session of our half-day, interactive Federal Grants series, designed to support nonprofit professionals before and during their first federal grant. Buy Now     You'll learn:  Best practices for staff time and effort tracking Best practices for procuring materials and...

  SESSION 3 of the FEDERAL GRANTS SERIES Price: $150 The third session of our half-day, interactive Federal Grants series, designed to support nonprofit professionals before and during their first federal grant. Buy Now     You'll learn:  When an evaluator must be outside of the program versus outside of the organization ...

  The second session of our half-day, interactive Federal Grants series, designed to support nonprofit professionals before and during their first federal grant. Buy Now     You'll learn:  The change from Duns and Bradstreet to Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) How to register for the System for Award Management and...

  The first session of our half-day, interactive Federal Grants series, designed to support nonprofit professionals before and during their first federal grant. Buy Now     You'll learn:  How to examine major trends in federal funding and how to find appropriate grant opportunities for your organization as an awardee...

I have worked in grants development for 26 years (boy, time flies when you are having fun!). Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to attend my very first Grant Professionals Association (GPA) annual conference. Many would ask, “Really, you are just now attending the GPA conference after so many years in this business?” I am grateful to have joined the team at Assel Grant Services (AGS), where professional development and GPA involvement are high priorities. I started with AGS in late August, and one of my first assignments was to register for the GPA annual conference. There was no question about whether or not I would attend - it was a given that I would. And I am so glad I got this opportunity. It turns out, as I learned from the conference, you CAN teach a “seasoned” grant writer new tricks – tricks that will not only improve their work, but will shift their thinking, make them a better grant writer, and because of some of the topics that were presented, will just make them a better person overall.

Spooky season is upon us, and at AGS we’ve been thinking about what keeps us up at night when it comes to grants. As grant pros, we are skilled at anticipating challenges and putting controls in place to mitigate negative outcomes in our grant programs. Here are some eerie grant scenarios with suggested actions that’ll have you sleeping like a baby.

One of the most important resources in nonprofit organizations is the staff. They form relationships with the people they serve. They build relationships in the community to find the resources clients need. Without them, the nonprofit programs and services which affect millions of lives would fall silent. While we are advocates of writing grants which describe how the target population is involved in the program, this does not mean that organizations should stop describing the strengths of their staff. Here are four ways to highlight the quality and importance of your staff in your next grant:

  Grant 101: Common Grant Attachments Session 9 of the Grants 101 Series A grant proposal is only one component of most grant applications. Other components include proof of nonprofit status, a board roster, an organizational budget, a program budget, and financial statements, as well as an annual...