The Boss Wants What??

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11/10/2016

The Boss Wants What?? Surviving the Foray into Federal Funding

Johna Rodgers, GPC Principal, Johna Rodgers Consulting, LLC Nov. 2016  GPA National Conference

Introduction • Johna Rodgers, GPC – 25+ years in grants, nonprofits – Certified through GPCI (Grant Professionals Certification Institute) – Formerly with the Green River Regional Ed. Cooperative (KY) – $132+ million in grants since 2001 – State, national trainer (GWUSA, KY Dept. of Ed., UofL) – Past GPA National Board Member (2010-2015) – For the past 544 days…

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Order of worship • Defining “federal” funding • Review of the types of grants and funders • Finding the funding (and the program) • Identifying and meeting the challenges • Empowering you to succeed • Q&A

But first, the complexity • Federal proposals are complex • There are lots of instructions from multiple sources • But people dumber than you do it every day (like me) • Let’s look at a few examples – JAG grants – NSF grants – HHS grants – Dept. of Ed grants

Activity

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Not just an RFP / NOFA • With federal grants, you have lots of moving parts – – – – – – –

Announcement in the Federal Register (NIA, NOFA, RFP, etc.) Instruction package Submission package Guidance booklet Webinar FAQs Resources (that aren’t very helpful)

All start in the same place

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Civics 101 • Three branches of government • Money is found in the Legislative and Executive branches • Timeline for funding begins with the State of the Union Address • Ends in deadlock (not always, but…) • Two kinds of money: mandatory and discretionary

Budget review

Money lands… where? • The money lands in one of the many federal departments (DOT, DOJ, HHS, USDA, etc.) • Within each department are multiple agencies • The federal government is a lot like the mall…

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SEARS

DILLARDS

Food Court

J.C.PENNEY

SEARS Women’s

MACY’S

Optometry

Home

Children’s

Men’s J.C.PENNEY

Auto

DILLARDS

Jewelry

SEARSFood Court Tools Garden

Shoes

Appliances

MACY’S

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Money lands… where? • So looking for a grant can be like going to the mall looking for a perfect dress or shoes or… – You know where the mall is – You know what you want is there – So you dive in… https://www.justice.gov/agencies https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies https://www.usaspending.gov/transparency/Pages/AgencyProfiles.aspx

So where do you start? • Phone a friend • Read about it (Chronicle, other vendors) • Follow a specific program (or two) • Play with the CFDA (https://cfda.symplicity.com/?s=program&tab=s earch&mode=list) • Subscribe to the Federal Register (targeted subscription: https://www.federalregister.gov/ )

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So where do you start? • What about Grants.Gov? – New funding forecast (HHS only) – Other agencies have (or don’t have) their own forecasts  US Department of Agriculture + NIFA  US Department of Education  Housing and Urban Development  Department of Justice

Narrow it down • Figure out your specific “store” and learn all you can about that store (i.e., agency) • That includes finding the budget – Old and new – Mandatory and discretionary http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/hudd oc?id=FY16-CJE-EntireFile.pdf http://www2.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/tables.html

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Narrow it down • Budget and forecast will help you find the individual programs • You may also be able to tell: – – – –

The funding cycle and timing of RFP release dates The size of typical awards Past award winners Publicly posted grants

http://datawarehouse.hrsa.gov/Tools/FindGrants.aspx http://www2.ed.gov/programs/innovation/awards.html

Narrow it down • Can’t find what you want? – – – –

Check USASpending.Gov Email the program Do a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request Call a nearby grantee (Phone a Friend)

• REMEMBER, find a program first!! Do not make a random call to a program or grantee looking for funding

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Once you’ve found a program • Determine when the RFP/NOFA will be released – Likely very similar to the previous year – Pots of money don’t often go away; they get renamed (so look for the trail) – Email the program and ask when the new RFPs will be released – Identify the challenges of writing for that particular program; communicate those objectively to the boss

Challenges • Time • Strong content • Competitiveness (and the odds) • Identifying tasks

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Time • Factors include: – – – – –

Content team availability Knowledge of the program Research vs. services Size of the grant award (and its expectations) Weird stuff

Time • Average proposal (for me) takes 175-225 Different hours from

foundation • Generally get 6-8 weeks to develop the proposalproposals? Or state proposals?

– It takes a week on the front end to decide if you’ll be writing it – It takes a week on the back end for proofing and outputting – It takes a lot of time in between to meet, talk, develop the program

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Time • Program development is the #1 priority • Form a small team, choosing members carefully • Begin immediately to assign substantive work to team members – Other people will not have time for you – You must demand that time – How?

Time • Detailed task timeline with names • Meeting/Conference call schedule (created with Doodle, selection criteria) • Schedule for outputting (editing, revisions) • Clear delineation of duties—and you’re in charge – Remember, no one likes to really be in charge – Make sure they know you are the one driving the process

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Creating Strong Content • Just like the stores in the mall offer different products, federal programs meet different needs • The strongest grants… – Are a near perfect match for the funder – Are submitted by orgs with a bit of experience or expertise in that area – Are doable based on the level of complexity and expertise (i.e., research vs. program; innovation vs. services)

Creating Strong Content • The RFP/NOFA sets the purpose and minutia • Creating a detailed task list limits the surprises • Specific things to think about include: – – – – –

Required partners, partner commitments Required service delivery and eligibility Required evaluation Required match Required program elements

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Creating Strong Content • Consider creating a “dummy copy” of the proposal – – – – –

Forms Table of contents Narrative (based on selection criteria) Budget and budget narrative Letters, other attachments

Creating Strong Content • Let the selection criteria guide much of your work – Task timeline and interviews/meetings – The perspective of your delivery – The determination of your audience (who will be reading your proposal???)

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Competitiveness • The odds vary greatly • For example, programs may award 10 grants nationally or 200+ • How do you know? – Past awards – www.grants.gov

Competitiveness • Some have competitive preference points (high poverty, innovation, other) • Some require a high level of evaluation (and an experienced evaluator) • Some require regional or national impact • Look at recent awardees to see if you look like past winners (just like you do for foundation proposals)

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Identifying tasks • How do you know what must be done? • Lots of guidance there (see Slide #7) • When you’ve made an initial decision to probably write the proposal… – Sit down with all the documents – Read. Read. Read. – Make a list of everything that must be included

ReviewTaskTimeline

Empowering your success • Federal proposals can be complicated! • Generally take much more time than a local, state or foundation proposal • But they are completely doable, if… – – – –

You are personally ready You ask the right questions You are organized and meticulous Your organization is ready

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Empowering your success • You can easily get ready • Can your organization? – Cash flow – Accounting systems – Data collection systems – http://www.dhleonardconsulting.com/services/gra nt-readiness-assessment/

Questions? • Contact me… Johna Rodgers, GPC [email protected]

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XYZ Phone Schedule • All times are EASTERN Week #1 (Oct. 12-18) Wed., 10/14/15 @ 11:45 EDT

Barry Mike

Ashley

Work plan and timeline (macro view)

Thursday, 10/15/15 @ 9 a.m.

Barry

Rationale / hypothesis

@ 2 p.m.

Barry

Goals, objectives, outcomes (initial discussions)

Friday, 10/16/15 @ 4 p.m.

Barry Mike

Ashley

Work plan and timeline – teachers / PD (schools in place; challenges considered)

Week #2 (Oct. 19-24) Tuesday, 10/20/15 @ 9 a.m.

Barry

Goals, objectives; rationale review

@ 10 a.m.

Barry Mike

@ 11 a.m.

Barry

TBD

@ 4 p.m.

Brent

Research questions

Wed., 10/21/15 @ 11 a.m.

Mike

Student activities clarified

@ 8 a.m.

Brent

Evaluation methodology

@ 3 p.m.

Barry Mike

@ 4 p.m.

Ashley

Budget draft sent to Jr, reviewed on call

@ 9 a.m.

Barry

TBD

@ 3 p.m.

Barry Mike

@ 4 p.m.

Barry Mike

Dissemination plan

Saturday, 10/24/15 Flexible

Brent

Forward research or evaluation plan to Jr

Ashley Brent

Work plan and timeline – students / camp

Thursday, 10/22/15 Ashley Brent

Review goals, objectives, rationale; discuss anticipated results

Friday, 10/23/15

[email protected], 270-991-7470

Ashley Brent

Goals, objectives; rationale review

10/13/15

Week #3 (Oct. 26-30) Tuesday, 10/27/15 @ noon Wed., 10/28/15 @ 9 a.m. Thursday, 10/29/15 Flexible

Brent

Discussion of research and/or eval plans

Ashley

Budget update, submission logistics

Brent

Forward research or eval plan to Jr

Additional dates may be set, but likely those will be impromptu sessions on specific issues with individuals (e.g., more logistics sessions with Ashley, finalizing drafts with Barry, etc.). All meetings will be for 1 hour or less. If a meeting becomes unnecessary, it will be cancelled. In addition: •

Homework assignments may be assigned for individuals or groups; these will be simple but time sensitive.



Meetings will be held via conference calls: Dial-in: xxx-xxx-xxxx Access Code: 123-456

[email protected], 270-991-7470

10/13/15

Full Proposal Tasks as of 07/02/15 Tasks 1 Download application (packet, Grants.Gov forms) 2 Logistics: Schedule phone calls, make assignments

July - Week 1 7/8

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9 Draft evaluation section received

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10 Draft Budget #1 (w/detail) 11 Selection criteria notes completed 12 Finalize PD schedule, product development/design 13 Begin completing Grants.Gov forms online

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14 Final budget in place 15 Writing narrative sections

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6 Critical conversations: A.2 - National significance A.3 - Potential replicability, variety of settings B.1 - Design tweeks (family, math?) B.2 - Mgt Plan, timeline, milestones, etc.) B.3 - Ensuring feedback, cont. improvement B.4 - Broad dissemination

PUT EMAIL HERE

Aug - Week 1

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5 General timeline in place; work sessions set

16 Appendices: A - Eligibility Requirement Checklist B - Nonprofit Status C - Statutory Requirements (history match, schools) D - Evidence Standards (strong theory / hypoth.) E - Waiver ?? F - Resumes received Organization bios received, combined Vitae (name, name, name, name….) Job description drafted (Project Director) G - Letters in hand Districts Partner 1, 2, 3, etc. MOA commitments?

July - Week 4

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4 Read the full proposal RFP and NIA

8 Re-draft project objectives

July - Week 3

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3 Continue talks w/districts; request letters/send template

7 Data collected for region, schools

July - Week 2

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Full Proposal Tasks as of 07/02/15 Tasks

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Match? Other??? H - Applicant Info Sheet I - Proprietary Info J - Other Currriculum sample? Eval protocols, instruments? Other

19 Narrative, appendices submitted to client / boss

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21 Add page # references to the budget as needed 22 Table of contents, divider pages



23 Abstract



24 Appendices merged as a pdf 25 Page numbers verified for upload 27 Final changes 28 Submit 29 Single Point of Contact w/state

PUT EMAIL HERE

8/7 8/10 8/11 Johna

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20 Final internal approvals

26 Re-read RFP

Assigned to

DUE!!

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17 GEPA 427 statement 18 Confirm citations; determine format

Aug - Week 1

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