Grant Application Tips

Basic ideas to help prepare a grant application:

  1. Match your project to the specifications of grants funded by REF. DO make certain your idea fits under the broad umbrella of the grant program (see How To Apply). State your goals and outcomes clearly. Remember: a goal is a broad statement about what you hope to accomplish. It usually is not measurable. An outcome is a specific measurable statement about what you will do.

  2. Delineate your plan with utmost care. DO be specific about what you will do and when you will do it. Include a summary of proposed student activities that corresponds with your project proposal, shows good planning, and brings life to your project. Write clearly and succinctly. Demonstrate the alignment of planned activities to your goals, outcomes, and grant requirements. DON’T expect grant readers to guess what you are going to do; instead, tell them your plan. There is no need to use excess verbiage or unnecessary language but be very clear on your intent.

  3. Observe technical guidelines. DO read directions on the REF website carefully and make certain to include everything mentioned. Aplications that lack specific details are often not funded. Have a sound, detailed budget. Get estimates for costs to be incurred and the length of time needed to complete the project.

  4. Emphasize the benefits. DO show how a grant project will benefit all participants. Be specific in how many students will benefit from your project. Do focus on the expected impact on student learning, including specific skills that will be learned and used (i.e. create, assess, analyze, evaluate, apply, understand, etc.).

  5. Describe long-term implications. DO have an evaluation plan that reflects on your goals and measures your outcomes. Describe how assessment information will be collected and used. DO include how your grant project will be effectively used in subsequent years. How will the funded grant benefit future students and/or teachers? DO include foreseeable problems in not being able to continue using the grant project for future students. DO include your solutions to these potential conflicts.

  6. Enlist the support of your principal, colleagues, and REF liaison.