The Foundations of East Chicago (FEC) awards thousands of dollars in grants to local nonprofit organizations every year. However, we are not able to award every organization all of the money that it needs. This is why effective grant application writing is so important. By using the following steps as a guide, you can improve your grant writing skills so that you can apply to other foundations for grants and maximize your organization’s awards.
- Do Research
- It is important to research on the organization offering grant funding opportunities. This will help you to write an application that is specifically tailored to the funder. Additionally, many grants have very specific application requirements. Doing your research first can save time later by helping to ensure that you only apply for grants for which your organization is qualified.
- Define a Category
- There are typically two categories that corporate giving programs fall into: operational general purpose support grants and program development. When applying, you should have an understanding of which category best suits your organizational needs so that you apply for the appropriate grants.
- Use Outside Resources
- Be sure to do some research on the process of grant writing before getting started. You want to submit the best application possible.
- Don’t Get Discouraged
- You may not receive the first grant that you apply for, but that’s ok. Keep writing and editing. Grant writing is a process and, the more you do it, the better you will get.
FEC is here to assist any East Chicago nonprofit that may need help with funding. For more information on what FEC has to offer, visit www.FoundationsEC.org.
