09 Oct

Posted at 19:00h in AGS Staff, Competency Four, Competency Three, Federal Grants, Logic Models, Professional Development
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.

14 Sep

Posted at 10:38h in Competency Seven, Competency Three, Courses, GPCI Competencies, Grant Management, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, Grants 301, How-To, Uncategorized

    Grants 301: Managing Up Session 5 of the Grants 301 Series One of the greatest challenges we face as grant professionals is getting the information and resources needed to craft project ideas and develop competitive proposals. This information is often spread across multiple people and departments…from finance to...

17 Jul

Posted at 14:22h in AGS Staff, Case Statements, Competency Three, Evaluation, Funding, Research
In a recent post, my colleague Michele Ryan gave a library of great data sites to bookmark and pull fresh data from. In this post I challenge you to look internally at the data you already collect within your organization or for your grant proposals and consider how to freshen it up a bit by making it more recent, more relevant, and more specific.

07 Jul

Posted at 12:14h in Competency One, Competency Three, Competency Two, Courses, GPCI Competencies, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, Grants 301, How-To, Logic Models, Uncategorized

  Grants 301: Logic Models and Theory of Change Session 4 of the Grants 301 Series While traditional philanthropy focused on funding immediate needs and short-term goals, the practice of philanthropy is taking a turn towards social change. Funders desire to fund change, not charity. In this way, philanthropy...

17 Jun

Posted at 13:26h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Courses, Evaluation, GPC, GPCI Competencies, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, Grants 101, How-To, Julie Alsup, Julie Alsup, Logic Models, Program Development, Uncategorized

    Grants 101: Evaluation and Logic Models Session 6 of the Grants 101 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...

10 Jun

Posted at 12:46h in Competency Six, Competency Three, Courses, Ethics, Ethics, GPCI Competencies, Grant Readiness, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, How-To, Julie Assel, Julie Assel, GPC, Partnerships, Program Design, Program Development, Uncategorized

    Ethics: The Ethics of Program Design: Plans and Partners Session 5 of the Ethics Series Creating a high-quality grant proposal can be challenging when organizations may also be designing the program at the same time. Alignment to the mission of the organization and its strategic plan versus...

13 May

Posted at 13:03h in Competency Four, Competency Three, Courses, GPCI Competencies, Grant Readiness, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, Grants 101, How-To, Julie Assel, Julie Assel, GPC, Need & Need Statements, Uncategorized

  Grants 101 - Describing the Key Components of Your Program Session 5 of the Grants 101 Series A common mistake of many grant proposals is not providing enough information for the funder to truly understand the program. This session will guide attendees on what key program...

10 May

Posted at 16:35h in AGS Staff, Competency Three, Competency Two, Funder Relations, Organizational Development, Program Design, Relationships
As grant professionals, we all know that one way to boost our proposals is to include collaboration. Funders like to see partnerships for a number of reasons. But too often, the partnerships we include might not be very substantive. Maybe we worked together on one event or they refer a few clients to our organization. But funders emphasize collaboration for good reason and it might be time to truly give those partnerships a chance to GROW! So, how do you go about helping your partnerships blossom? Begin by taking stock of all of your current partners, big or small. Partners could include other nonprofit organizations, funders, businesses, or individuals. Assess the ways in which you currently partner and begin thinking outside of the box to explore other ways in which both parties could benefit from expanded collaboration. One way the levels of partnership are often framed is through the 3C Model, which came from the for-profit sector. Its tiers include cooperation, coordination, and collaboration (moving from simple to complex). Here are a few ideas of ways to expand from surface-level partnership to meaningful relationships that benefit everyone involved:

29 Apr

Posted at 13:07h in Competency Four, Competency Six, Competency Three, Courses, Ethics, Ethics, GPCI Competencies, Grant Readiness, Grant Training Series, Grant Writing, How-To, Julie Assel, Julie Assel, GPC, Need & Need Statements, Uncategorized

    Ethics: Ethics for Grant Proposal Need Statements Session 4 of the 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 the funders’...