Tag Archives: Foundation

Focusing on Foundation Grants

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Did you know that foundations in the United States give billions of dollars to schools every year? Millions of dollars are not even distributed simply because not enough schools apply.

That’s not usually the case with many well-known foundations, but it is true with foundations that are not in the public eye as much.

How does that impact you and your school? Instead of everyone trying to get Bill & Melinda Gates to give them money, they should be concentrating on the foundations that are not as popular and more closely match up with their schools’ needs. It is extremely important to find a foundation with a strong emphasis that just happens to be the same emphasis you have at your school. That may be improving attendance, lowering your failure rate, or improving math scores.

Even though more money is given to schools with high at-risk populations or more economically depressed populations, that is less true generally of foundation grants than federal or state grants.

Here’s the problem. How do you find all these foundations and find out what their main mission is? If you search the Internet, you will find some of them. Newsletters often list a few foundation grants.

If you want to get anywhere near finding all the foundation grants for which you are eligible, you will probably need to subscribe to a grant database. A database is a perfect place to find foundation grants because it usually allows you to search by state or region, and it also allows you to search by type of grant need.

However you happen to find the foundations, please consider applying to a few of them for grant funds. Find those that are less competitive. Phone them. Tell them what your school is trying to accomplish. Get them interested before you even apply.

Making this contact will also be easier if you use a grant database. The database will often give you a telephone number, an email, even a website link to each foundation. That makes it easier to make contact. This contact can often help you make your application better and help you secure the money you need.

Foundations give schools billions of dollars each year. Why shouldn’t you get grant money just like other schools?

The problem is that you can’t get any money unless you apply, and you can’t apply until you find the foundations that give grant money to schools. Use the Internet, use grant newsletters, and, above all, use a good grant database to find that grant money for your school.

Don Peek is a school funding expert. He worked in education as a teacher, principal, and assistant superintendent for 20 years. He has run The School Funding Center since 2001. The School Funding Center Grant Database contains over 100,000 grants worth more than $6.5 billion.
http://www.schoolfundingcenter.info

Business Federal Grant Overview and Top Website Sources

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The Federal Government spends billions of dollars on grant programs to small businesses and home based entrepreneurs every year. There are also hundreds of millions of dollars of state grant aid available, and grants and contests hosted by the Small Business Development Corporation. While there are several sources for grant money for your small business, this article will focus on Federal Grants, as they are the mostly widely available.


Finding Federal Grants is not daunting because they are hard to find – its daunting because you can get buried in books and data. The first place to go is your local public library, and check out any of the -phone books- by Matthew Lesko. Another excellent place to start searching is the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, or CFDA, which lists agencies to contact for formula grants and project grants.


The CFDA has a web site (URL below), that will help you search for grants based on your needs and goals, and will then provide you with links for the information needed to apply.


12.46.245.173/pls/portal30/CATALOG.TYP_ASSISTANCE_DYN.show


Once you have found a potentially interesting grant proposal (or a dozen), contact the agency and find out if your proposal or project proposal meets their funding requirements, and if they still have funds available for disbursement, or any other questions you might have.


Assuming everything matches up, its time to fill out a Form 424, called the Application for Federal Assistance. This is the generalized grant application form for most Federal development grants; it is considered a baseline form. Some agencies may have other forms you will need to fill out as well. The CFDA has extensive help files on writing grant proposals and the proper forms and what needs to go into them to make them work.


In addition to the CDFA site, you should also check out Grants.gov. This is another search engine of federal grant opportunities; while theres some overlap in grants in both databases, theres an awful lot thats in one that isnt in the other.


There are also private directories that list federal grant opportunities; Matthew Lesko (mentioned above) is the largest public marketer of these directories; you have probably seen him on late night television, dressed in a purple suit with yellow question marks all over it. His books are regularly stocked in local public libraries, and while some of the information is dated, there are plenty of gems to be found there, and some excellent advice.


Other places to look for grant monies include foundations and non-profit organizations. Probably the best central clearing house of information on foundation and nonprofit organizations is The Foundation Center, particularly for its Foundation Grants to Individuals. This lists, all in one place, grants for individuals rather than non-profit organizations. There is a small subscription rate for the online service, and the book is available for purchase, and can be found in the reference section of the local library.


foundationcenter.org/getstarted/individuals.


One of The Foundation Centers more useful services is online courses on grant writing and researching grant opportunities. Some grant opportunities are open only to non-profit organizations; this is not as difficult a requirement as you might think; it is worth investigating if your business can work as a non-profit organization.

Get detailed information free online from the author, Leon Edward, on government funding, Federal, State, Local Grants , where to find start up grants, sources, how best to fill out grant applications, grant management step by step tips, setting up a business steps at his website
Grants For Business Start Up

Finding Single Parent College Grants and Scholarships

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Those who have the responsibility of raising their children on their own have very busy lives and because of this they often find it difficult to go back to school. Not to mention that the costs of raising children is so expensive that it can be impossible to afford an education. According to Raise the Nation, roughly 38% of all single mothers live in poverty, making returning to school an impossible feat. However, having a bachelor’s degree gives them a much greater chance of doing better in life. There are many single parent college grants and scholarships that can make the dream of returning to school a reality.

If you find yourself wanting to return to school, but know you can’t afford it, then it is time to start doing a little research to see if you qualify for any of the many single parent college grants and scholarships which have been designed to help people just like you go back to school. This is the best way to secure a financially sound future for you and your children and you will be setting an excellent example for them as well. The following are a few of the better college grants for single parents that you may want to apply for.

One of the better known college grants for single parents is The Jeanette Rankin Foundation Scholarship Program which was founded in 1978. Since then it has helped over 500 women go back to school by providing them with much needed scholarship funds. If you are interested in applying for this opportunity, forms are available between November and February of each year. Although the fund is targeted to single women who are at least 35 years of age, many single parents fit this criteria.

The Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund is an excellent place to start if you happen to live in the state of Arkansas. Most counties in the state participate in this program and it is one of the better single parent college grants available if you qualify.

Another foundation that offers grants for single parents is Patsy Takemoto Mink Education Foundation for Low-Income Women and Children which was formed in 2003. The organization specializes in providing access to education, support, and opportunities for women, especially mothers, who come from low income households.

The R.O.S.E. scholarship is another route to take that was established for women who come from a background of domestic abuse to help them improve their lives. This fund is provided mostly to women who live in the New England area of the United States and to qualify you typically must have completed at least one year of undergraduate studies already. These are just a few examples of the many single parent college grants available that can help you realize your dream of getting your degree.

Author: Pieter West
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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