Application Requirements
Grantwriting and grant reviewing take time, effort, and labor. Streamline your application process to make smart use of those resources on both sides. Assess what your organization really needs to know in order to make decisions. Then, adjust your requirements accordingly.
Determine what information can be shared verbally rather than on paper. Conversations with grantseekers can stand in for, or supplement, aspects of the application process. (Do document your in-person, phone, or email conversations in notes to the file or in grant recommendation documents.)
You might also hold meetings of potential applicants, in person or via web or audio conference call, to explain the funding guidelines and application procedures as a funding round or year begins. This has proven to be a very effective method for communication.
In a streamlined application approach, grantmakers might:
- Develop a shorter application and reporting form for small grants
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- Take care to ensure that grantseekers don’t expend more time and money seeking the grant than they receive in funding.
- Store grantee information so that repeat applicants can provide updates without resubmitting documents and information.
- For repeat grantees, use the final report from the last grant as the next proposal, eliminating the need for a separate application altogether.
- Obtain basic information from the applicant’s website or third-party services like GuideStar.
- Accept a Common Grant Application.
- Design a small supplementary application that meets your organization’s specific needs, and accept it in combination with the Common Grant Application.
For more information, click on the links below:
Sample Documents and Templates
External Resources
990-PF
"990-PF." GivingForum.org. 26 Jan. 2008. Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers. 26 Jan. 2008. This site offers an overview of the most important aspects of filling out the 990-PF, focusing on what to know before signing the 990-PF and common errors to avoid.
"Demystifying the 990-PF." Foundation Center.org. 26 Jan. 2008. The Foundation Center. 26 Jan. 2008. This article provides an online tutorial on the 990-PF.
"IRS Form 990: An Illustrated Tutorial." 26 Jan. 2008. GuideStar. 26 Jan. 2008.
"Understanding the IRS Form 990." 26 Jan. 2008. GuideStar. 26 Jan. 2008.
Coding and Classification
"Nonprofit Organization and Program Classifications." 28 Jan. 2008. National Center for Charitable Statistics. 28 Jan. 2008. The National Center for Charitable Statistics is the national clearinghouse of data on the nonprofit sector in the United States. Its NTEE (National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities) is the leading classification system for categorizing the activities and purposes of nonprofit organizations.
Foundation Center Grants Classification System. The Foundation Center's Grants Classification System (GCS) has a two-tiered indexing structure: the first tier comprises information that is always true to the recipient organization; the second tier comprises information that is true to a specific grant.
Financial Statements
Berger, Stephen S. "Understanding Nonprofit Financial Statements". BoardSource. This publication describes key accounting concepts and provides sample nonprofit financial statements with explanation.
Grant Application/Proposals
"Common Grant Applications."28 Jan. 2008. GivingForum.org. 28 Jan. 2008. his page provides links to the common grant applications that have been developed by regional associations of grantmakers around the country.
"Using Competitions & RFPs." Grantcraft. When does it make sense to hold a grant competition or use an RFP? In addition to looking at management issues to consider along the way, this guide explores how grant makers shape competitions to serve larger strategic goals, communicate with wider audiences, create a learning community, and find ways to work with those who are not selected.
"Sample Grant Guidelines, The Family Advisor: Grantmaking Issues." 28 Jan. 2008. COF.org. 28 Jan. 2008.
Grants Management Software
Bocock, Piers. "Comparing Grant-Management Software." 3 Jan. 2003. TechSoup.org. 28 Jan. 2008. This article compares grants management software options for efficient management of grants.
Schneiderman, Martin B. "Trends in Grants Management Software and Services." Foundation News & Commentary Vol. 44, No. 3 (May/June 2003). This article looks at commercial providers of grants management software and services.
Solpath. "A Consumers Guide to Grants Management Systems." This detailed 89-page report summarizes the common features and eighteen different systems used by grantmakers to track outgoing funds, with prices and a comparison chart.
Tax Status Verification
GuideStar. 28 Jan. 2008. GuideStar.org. 28 Jan. 2008. A searchable database of nonprofit organizations in the United States with information on organizations’ 501(c)(3) status, EIN, contact information, and financial information, GuideStar offers tools that enable grantmakers to work more efficiently.
"IRS Exempt Organization Search (Online Version of Publication 78)." Publication 78, Cumulative List of Organizations described in Section 170(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, is a list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions. This online version is offered to help you conduct a more efficient search of these organizations.
"IRS Bulletin." IRS.gov. 28 Jan. 2008. The IRS publishes weekly announcements of all substantive rulings. The announcement for “exempt organizations” includes information on organizations whose public charity status has been revoked.
IRS Private Letter Ruling and Determination Letters. The IRS will rule on the tax consequence of proposed changes to an organization's purposes or activities. An organization can request a private letter ruling if it is unsure about whether proposed changes are consistent with its status as an exempt organization. Transactions that require a private letter ruling are listed.
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