Getting a Fundable Idea
"Grants
come in a variety of types. Typical categories include awards, general
support, endowments, fellowships,
matching funds, continuing
support, etc. Grants can be given for projects, or for things like
research, scholarships, or seed money. Some grantors have a specific time
limit during which you are required to use your funds or forfeit them;
other grantors provide funds with no time constraints. Grantors usually
have geographic preferences, ranging from a local district or city, to
county, state, or national level." (http://www.friendcalib.org/newsstand/f3grant.htm)
Programs that are new and innovative can be very attractive to funders.
On the other hand, programs that are well established and have a proven
record of success are more attractive to other funders. You will need
to do some research into their giving history to see which type of projects
they have awarded money too previously.
"As reported in the Chronicle of Higher Education (Jan. 14, 1987),
foundations generally base their decision to finance a project on five
criteria: the quality of the people involved, the significance of the
problem, the importance of the solution to the problem or the idea being
proposed, the stature of the sponsoring institution, and the reasonableness
of the price. "(http://www.wilbers.com/grants.htm#Columns)
This report
written by researchers from Microsoft will help to outline some of
the problems with ideas for grant proposals. Click on the following link
and scroll down to the section titled "Common Shortcomings".
(http://research.microsoft.com/Users/simonpj/papers/Proposal.html)
EXERCISE: On your Study Guide, write down the name of the project or the idea that needs funding. Answer the following questions regarding your project or idea:
- Is it needed?
- Does it solve an important problem?
- Is it timely, unique, and innovative?
- Can you or your organization realistically follow through on what you are proposing?
If you answered yes to all of these questions, you have found a fundable
idea.
