A
complete grant proposal has certain time honored elements:
1.
Cover Letter
No
more than one page.
Who
you are and your background, purpose of funding, and
the amount of your request should appear in the first paragraph.
Include a contact name, phone number and address.
2.
Proposal Summary
Limit
to one page.
State
the organization making the request and link
organizational background to the proposal purpose.
State
your project purpose.
Briefly
state how your project will be implemented.
State
the results you expect from your project.
Include
your total budget amount, other funds that
are committed and the amount of your request.
90%
of funding decisions by private donors and foundations
will be
made by the time the funder finishes reading this page.
It must be
concise, compelling, and clear!
3.
Introduction to the Organization
History
General Purpose
Goals and objectives as they relate to this
project, and in
overview, as they provide a context for the work you
want
to undertake.
Accomplishments, especially as they relate to this
project or
to your capacity to provide this project.
Service areas and population served.
4.
Statement of Problem or Need
Use a funnel approach.
Start with the generalized problem as it occurs in
your community.
Move to the conditions which make this a problem.
Outline current resources that address this
problem and identify
gaps in those resources.
Identify how your proposal will fill these gaps.
5.
Project Goals and Objectives
What specific goals are you trying to achieve?
What measurable milestones will you reach in
meeting those goals?
How will you and the funder know that you are
making progress towards your goals?
6.
Methods and Schedule
What actions will you take to achieve your goals?
What steps must you take to achieve success?
Who will do what? (Include here job descriptions
and background statements of staff or the
qualifications you will seek in staff for the
project. This is true even if "staff" will
actually be volunteers.)
When will these actions take place?
7.
Evaluation Criteria and Process
How will you know whether you are achieving your
goals?
What will you measure to evaluate your progress?
What records and information will you keep to
allow you to measure
your progress?
7.
Budget
More detail is better than less.
Don't round out if possible. Use bids and
estimates whenever you
can get them - even if they are informal quotes.
Don't pad your budget. Competent reviewers will
know the cost of
goods and services, and will understand prevailing
wages. If they
know you are trying to deceive them on budget, what
else will they suspect you of trying to deceive them
about?
Do include all sources of support - including
volunteer time, donated
space and borrowed equipment. Don't shortchange the
contribution
your community is making to your project.
NURSING RESEARCH
