501(c)(3)

Grant Professional Certified

Grant Professional Certified

In this our third Link Party blog, we’ll discuss the eight competencies of the Grant Professionals Certification Institute (the elements upon which the exam for GPC certification are based). Click on the links in this blog for more great information from my esteemed colleagues Jana Jane Hexter, Diane Leonard, Heather Strombaugh and Mark Whitacre. You can also read our two previous Linky Party blogs here and here for more information and additional links. What Your Grant Professional Knows Could be Worth Millions! Do you engage a grant professional – staff or consultant – when you develop your strategic plan(s)? If…read more →

Spring, We Have Contact!

Spring, We Have Contact!

Spring into Grant Connections This is our second blog in an exciting partnership blog link group “Linky Party”  with esteemed grant writers from across the country, including Jana Jane Hexter, Diane Leonard, Heather Stombaugh, and Mark Whitacre. Click on the links throughout this article to read their fascinating and educational perspectives on Grants in springtime. Look for more Linky Party articles in the future! How-Do-You-Do?   In the Upper Midwest, for nearly 6 months, we rarely see our neighbors. During our sub-zero winters, when we do venture outside for a walk in the neighborhood we are unrecognizable anonymous bundles of…read more →

Chase the Money

Chase the Money

How Can You Get More Grants? Don’t Chase the Money!   Here is what I know for sure, a motto if you will – Don’t chase the money. Chase your dream! The money will follow. What do I mean by chasing money? Don’t go after a sponsor, a grant or an investor for their money. Be aggressive in planning your dream, your vision, your impact.  Go to a funder with you plan in hand. Approach a funder as a partner, an investor in YOUR vision.    There are many funding opportunities for all kinds of things from social enterprises to nonprofits, from…read more →

Building Virtual Trust to Win Grants

Building Virtual Trust to Win Grants

Build Virtual Trust to Win Grants Building trust is key to fundraising, grant seeking, partnerships and client services. is important, including grant seeking.   Building virtual trust is an essential element to building trust for your organization. Our world is wired to share information and build our reputations. Your reputation as an agency, as a board, as a program, and as a professional can impact the organization’s ability to secure funding. Building your online reputation and online relationships is vital to your organization’s reputation and you will increase your fundraising and grant seeking success. Grantors and donors feel entitled to having your…read more →

Playing “Budget Hero”, the Video Game!

Playing “Budget Hero”, the Video Game!

Are you and your staff  'Budget Heros' when it comes to grants?  I work with people who love to DO their work. These are passionate, take-charge, capable leaders who become wide eyed and immobile we start to discuss the impact of the federal budget on their organization.   It can be overwhelming when we try to consider how changes to a budget of  $3.8 trillion, with nearly a $1 trillion gap in debt, could impact a single organization?   Relatively minute changes in spending can drastically alter your government agency or nonprofit either through the impact on their clients or through…read more →

4 Reasons  You Want to Check Your Bylaws

4 Reasons You Want to Check Your Bylaws

Why do you want to invest time and energy in your Nonprofit Bylaws?   You want smooth operations  You value transparency and accountability  You do what is required  You want protection & clarity    1. Your Operating Manual Bylaws serve as an operating manual for your organization.  Your organization Bylaws address the principles, frameworks and, in some cases, policies for the overall governance of the organization.  Bylaws do not address the day-to-day operations details that the executive directors and employees oversee.  Bylaws often contain key policies regarding conflicts of interest and duties of loyalty. They are intended to be a…read more →

“Not-for-Profit” vs. “Nonprofit” – What is the Difference When it Comes to Grants?

“Not-for-Profit” vs. “Nonprofit” – What is the Difference When it Comes to Grants?

  These terms are used every day interchangeably but, there can be some subtle and legal distinctions that can make a difference in grant eligibility.  Technically, in most cases, there is no significant difference between these two terms. Most State corporation statutes use both terms within the same statute. However, the IRS uses the term “not-for-profit” as an activity, such as, a hobby (like crafting). The term Nonprofit is used to describe a nonprofit corporation that has been established for purposes other than making a profit, not necessarily a charitable organization, and has been granted tax-exempt status.   As a…read more →

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