Chapter
2 -
Developing The Proposal
Once
you have a few sponsors selected for your project idea, the Grants
Office can help you with many of the steps in developing the proposal:
- Providing editorial advice on proposal drafts. (See Preparing
the Parts of a Proposal.)
- Reviewing the budget.
- Advising you about obtaining necessary signatures.
- Advising you about submitting the proposal to meet agency
guidelines.
If the sponsoring agency holds any
kind of conference or workshop for grant proposers, you should
attend if at all possible. As soon as you learn about a grant,
contact the agency to determine if a workshop or planning conference
is planned. These workshops are typical when a large grant or
new grant activity is scheduled. The information gathered and
the contacts made at a conference or workshop will greatly increase
your chances of success. You may also have the opportunity to
visit with one of the grants officers and ask detailed questions.
Note: The Grants Office maintains contacts in Washington
and may be able to get information from a workshop or conference
if you are unable to attend.
It is completely permissible, and
often wise, to submit related or identical proposals to more than
one funding agency or to submit different parts of the same project
to different funding agencies. You should, however, follow
three important rules of behavior in submitting multiple proposals:
First,
let the sponsors know you are submitting to other agencies. Some
federal agencies even ask what other proposals you have pending.
For instance, NEA or NSF collaborates, as does FIPSE and NSF.
Second, if you receive funding from one sponsor, be sure
to let the others know; they will usually work with you to optimize
the allocation of the funds. Third, if you are applying
to different sponsors for support of different parts of a large
project, be sure to explain to each how something significant
would be accomplished by their contribution even if the others
do not come through. Otherwise, each sponsor will be reluctant
to commit to something that might prove useless by itself.
Another
useful way to learn about the development and writing of proposals
is to obtain copies of past successful proposals from the
funding source you are targeting. Please note that it may take
six months to a year to obtain a successful grant proposal from
a federal granting agency. It may be easier and faster to contact
a grant recipient directly and ask if a copy is available. By
reviewing a successful proposal, you get some ideas about what
the organization likes to see. Check with the Grants Office about
successful grants applications on file or ask a colleague who
has been successful with the sponsor.
If
possible, become a proposal reviewer. Reading the attempts
of many other people to put together a proposal gives you a much
better sense of what reviewers need. Being a reviewer also exposes
you to the latest ideas and information in your field. Most federal
agencies and some private ones need outside reviewers and are
glad to have additional help. Contact agencies or other sponsors
in your discipline to see if you can serve as a reviewer for them.
Even when all these ideas are familiar
in concept, it is often difficult to get started and to keep going.
Here are some additional tips:
A. As noted in Chapter 1, try writing
a short concept paper first. Many faculty members develop
several short concept papers encompassing different ideas in
different versions to show to state and federal agencies, foundations,
and colleagues as the occasion arises. The suggestions you receive
on these short papers will usually be helpful and will almost
always prompt you into further writing. Many corporations and
foundations want to see only such concept papers rather than
full proposals. This process saves time for you and them. Seek
out helpful academic colleagues to read and critique your work.
These individuals should understand the concept written and
the context of your discipline as well. Allow those outside
of your field an opportunity to review your writing also. This
helps to see if the document can be understood by a lay person.
B. Seek out advisors who are good
writers, experts in your field, and/or experienced at getting
grants. They may help you with good advice.
C. Books, articles, or other material on
proposal writing are available for your review through the Grants
Office or Forsyth Library (see Appendix A). By reading about
grant writing, you become more knowledgeable and have a better
idea about the process.
