Taking The First Steps

Once you’ve got your project idea, the next step is to get started on a grant application. There are a few things that are common to every grant application, the grant you apply for from your state will probably have a few more requirements. We’ll go over those in a moment, for now let’s move on…

But before you start filling out those placation forms, you must do a little bit of work yourself to give you a better chance of getting that grant.

You must first be very knowledgeable on the subject you are supposed to get the grant for. You can’t simply walk into a place and say I want to be a George Washington impersonator and teach kids about him without knowing anything about George Washington.

In other words: do some research, a little bit of studying and above all KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT before you even touch a grant application form.

I am just using that as an example.

Whatever you have decided to pursue as a grant project, do the work upfront. Have a finished product before you apply. You’ll see that every grant requires, at the very least, a detailed explanation of your proposed project. Many want a sample of it, so if you can, make a video presentation (it will help you out a great deal). This process will also let you see if the project fits you…if this is something you would enjoy doing.

Don’t make the mistake of just filling out the application and trying to BS your way through the Project Summary. It will be obvious to the people who review the applications. Do the work upfront!

After you have your project designed and ready, go get the application form from the department you are going to be working with in your state. Most states have the forms online so that you can just download it and print it out. Download it now and print yourself about 5 copies. Read over it and understand it.

Some of the forms will ask for your project summary on the form itself. It is usually very important to keep these summaries brief and to the point. If the form asks you for more detail or gives you an option for additional sheets, write out a detailed project summary which you will see an example of on the next page...