There seem to be two groups of grant applicants: The people who don’t know how to manage an RFP, and the people who do. For the novice grant writer, a state or federal RFP can be overwhelming and discouraging. For the experienced, successful grant writer, the RFP is a familiar roadmap that guides project vision building, grant writing team selection, grant application design, narrative construction, text choice and submission accuracy.

What has always seemed unfair to me, as an experienced grant evaluator, is that the schools in need of the most funding support rarely are able to produce the best applications. The rich always seem to get richer while the needy remain in need. Bad applications read like pleas to any kind-hearted evaluator for funding attention; good applications are carefully organized and well-crafted pieces of artfully technical writing that leaves the tired reviewer breathlessly yelling, “Fund this application before you fund anyone else’s!”

Public school certification programs and administrative licenses almost never include courses on grant writing , so I started teaching professional educators my successful strategy for writing grant applications . My students learn GrantSuccess. They learn how to manage and use the RFP like a windshield-mounted, pleasant-toned, full-color car navigation system. My system starts with getting your computer desktop ready to begin writing.

Getting Your Computer Desktop Ready To Begin Writing:

Open a folder on your desktop and give it a project name, such as “Project Inspiration.” Download the RFP, from whatever Web site it is on, to this new folder. From now on, you use this folder as the “go to” place for any grant-related documents. Move existing district documents into that folder. Include documents like the district continuous improvement plan, building continuous improvement plan, district technology plan, staffing and personnel lists. Somewhere, there is a description of your school district demographics. Find it and make it a separate document. Download the text of any former or current district grants that have been funded. This folder will eventually hold the three pre-writing documents that have shaped GrantSuccess, my strategy for creating successful grant applications.

Getting Your Writing Team Ready:

Create a document that includes all the names, e-mail addresses, cell phones and office phones of anyone you think might be involved at any stage of the grant application process. Somewhere in the district there is a gifted administrative assistant with incredible word processing skills. Put him on the list. Ask your Director of Technology to create a listserv for Project Inspire. Put everyone on the listserv. Instant electronic access and file sharing capacity will save many potentially wasteful hours. Group your project team into at least three subgroups. The first group is your creative/vision building team. They work on the front end of the application and help create the goals and objectives. The second group is the budget/acquisition team. This team works the numbers. The third team is the editing/final draft team. This group helps you catch writing mistakes that you have stopped seeing. This last team is your group of “in house reviewers.” They compare your application with the expectations of the RFP.

Now, you are ready for the next step: Building the Three Pre-writing Documents: These three creative documents will save you time and increase your chance for a successful grant application. In next few columns, I will describe how to construct these three helpful documents and give examples. RFP’s don’t have to be hell. They can be roadmaps that take you to your destination of increased funding.

Dr. Douglas Brooks  is a Professor in the School of Education, Health and Society at Miami University. He teaches graduate and online courses in grant writing and consults with school districts to build grant writing capacity.

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