Presenter:

David 

Department of Education 

Developing Quality 

Grant Proposals 

J. Downey 

Navigating the Grants Process 

Receiving the grant award 

Researching 

opportunities 

Beginning 

the journey... 

Understanding 

the 

Writing 

the grant 

Submitting 

the proposal 

process 

Readers Scores: 

100

98

95

Office of 

Migrant Education 

Migrant ED 

Even Start 

CFDA Number:: 

84.214A 

Sample Model Proposal 
Agenda 

� Review the grant application notice 

� Establish timetables 

� Address the selection criteria 

� Highlight model proposal strengths 

Grant Application Notice 

� Published in Federal Register 

� Accessible via the web 

� Contains all vital information 

� Primary tool for writing the proposal 

� Serves as outline for proposal 

Using the Application Notice 

� Don’t be intimidated by the language 

� Read notice thoroughly 

� Note application workshops 

� Print out all included forms 

�When in doubt ask questions 
Key Program Questions 

1. Who is eligible? 

2. When is the deadline(s)? 

3. What is the CFDA number? 

4. What is the award amount per grant? 

5. How many projects will be funded? 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. Where do I submit the application? 

10. Who is the program contact? 

Key Program Questions 

Is there a matching requirement? 

Where can I get the application? 

Is there a page limit? 

Establishing Timelines 

� Assess time available 

� Research programs well in advance 

� Recipe: 

� Outline necessary steps 

� Build organizational bio 

� Applying on-line 

2/3 planning; 1/3 writing 
Clear, concise, and detailed 

Consistent with institutional policy 

Meets federal requirements 

Aligned with purpose/statute 

Plots out the life of the grant 

Achieve project goals 

Monetary Road Map 
Visual Aids 

� Maximize space 

� Emphasize main points 

� Allow for quick comparisons 

Charts, tables, maps, and graphs can: 

Ensure symbols are clear 

for black and white copying 

Selection Criteria 

�Addressing the statute ( 5) 

� Novice eligibility ( 5) 

� Need for project (15) 

� Quality of project design (20) 

� Quality of project services (15) 

� Quality of project personnel (10) 

� Adequacy of resources (15) 

� Quality of project evaluation (20) 

Goal: 105

Meeting the Authorizing 

Statute 

� Not a “gimme” 

� Proposal must address statute 

� The opener of the narrative 

� Tie your proposal’s purpose to 

the statute 

� Connects other criteria together 
Need for Project 

� Typically sets the tone for proposal 

� Must be demonstrated through facts 

� Avoid emotion and rhetoric 

� Use most recent statistics and data 

� Compare target area with region 

and nation 

�Access Census website 

Utilizing Census Data 

� National and regional assistance 

� Site is free and user-friendly 

� American factfinder is primary tool 

for accessing statistics on: 

� Population 

� Income 

� Education 

� Track patterns by decade 

http://www.census.gov/

Quality of Project Design 

� Should meet the stated need 

� Reflects the life of the grant project 

� Detail recruitment of target 

population 

� Varied means of addressing need 

� Community outreach 

� Contingency plans 
Quality of Project Services 

� Curriculum proven via scientifically 

based research & practice 

� Cite examples of annual activities 

� Demonstrate how criteria meets need 

� Address professional development 

� Staff input & participant feedback 

Quality of Project Personnel 

� Detailed job descriptions 

� Competitive job qualifications 

� Time & effort and salaries 

� Resumes if applicable 

� Demonstrate staff’s ability to 

relate to target population 

Research average salaries regionally 

Adequacy of Resources 

� Allowable, allocable, reasonable 

� Budget for life of the grant 

� Address matching requirements 

� Non-federal support from applicant 

and partners—community buy in 

� Focus on sustainability 
Quality of Project Evaluation 

� Ambitious but attainable objectives 

� Annual goals and objectives 

� Time for input during project 

� Achieved through services 

� Meets the need 

� A tool for replicating success 

Writing Strong Objectives 

�Examples: 

� Participants will graduate on time. 

� 70%of participants will complete 

the program and receive their GED 

� 100% of our participants will be in good 

academic standing annually. 

� 65% of participants will be in good 

academic standing each grading period. 

Winning Reminders 

� Update statistics & applicant data 

� Budget wisely 

� Read What Should I Know 

About ED Grants? 

� Locate agency guidance 

� Register to apply on-line 

� Implement reader comments 

� Apply, Apply, Apply! 
Family Service Plans

No Child Left Behind

st






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A 

Report by the Council of Economic Advisers: Educational Attainment and Success 

in the New Economy: An Analysis of Challenges for Improving Hispanic 

Students’ Achievement. 
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“To develop a community of support and services that benefits young migrant children 

and family members resulting in increased literacy and learning through shared 

resources, face-to-face and technology-based communications, collaborations, and 

professional development and networking with community agencies.” 

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OBJECTIVE 1: – With the annual completion of the project 

and each year thereafter, 

progress toward meeting the FSP literacy goals developed jointly by each family and 

project staff. 

measures as the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE), average or above scores on 

axiom-based surveys, attitude questionnaires and performance samples. 

Adult Literacy/Education

family members – particularly parents – will make one year’s 

Significant progress will be assessed by pre-post measures on such 
OBJECTIVE 2: Early Childhood Education – With the annual completion of the project 

and each year thereafter, MEES children will make one year’s progress toward 

learning/literacy goals as identified in the FSP based on pre-post measures based upon 

such testing through the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: A Parent-Completed ChildMonitoring system, developmental checklists and satisfactory achievement on rubricscored performance samples. 
OBJECTIVES 3 & 4: Parenting, Education and Parent/Child Activities – With the 

annual completion of the project and each year thereafter, families will achieve 90% of 

the parenting and parent/child interaction goals as listed on Family Service Plans. 

Literacy logs, literacy behavior implementation checklists, observation matrices, surveys 

and anecdotal records on parenting skills and parent/child activities, will measure goal 

attainment.
OBJECTIVE 5: Professional Development – With the annual completion of the project 

and each year thereafter, project staff will be better prepared to facilitate 

instruction/activities that promote child/adult/family literacy/ 

by achievement of 90% of Professional Development Plan (PDP) goals, an overall rating 

of at least 3.5 (out of 5.0) on a Likert-type questionnaire on staff and professional 

development preparation and documentation of positive staff development effectiveness 

trends.

Success will be measured 

OBJECTIVE 6: Collaborative Partnerships for Resource Management – With 

completion of 

partnerships will be established and updated as needed to expand and enhance the 

services to Migrant Education Even Start families. 

contact logs, implementation checklists, anecdotal records, staff surveys, focus groups, 

and an end-of-year data reporting form. See appendix for sample checklist, logs, etc.

year one of the project and each year thereafter, collaborative 

Attainment will be measured through 


Ages and Stages Questionnaire: A Parent Completed Child Monitoring 

System






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Per. = Personnel; Fr. = Fringe Benefits; Tr. = Travel; Eq. = Equipment; Su. = Supplies; Con. = Contractual 
�� “How did community partnerships strengthen the project design?” 

�� “What attributes of the project contributed most to improving educational 

opportunities and services to support/accommodate the literacy and learning needs of 

children and their families?” 

�� “What collaborative strategies were most successful for community partners?” 

�� “What were the implementation barriers and how were they overcome?” 

�� “Which innovative supports and methods were key to the success of the project?” 

�� “Did children meet local/state outcomes at the expected rate through home-based 

and center-based programming?” 

�� “Did parents increase knowledge to support literacy and instruction in the home” 

�� “Were teachers able to apply student-centered principles correlated with MEES 

objectives?” 

�� “What percentages of parents and other family members met FEP goals?” 

1) How 

well did the three sites implement integrated early childhood education, adult literacy 
and adult basic education, and parent education through a unified family literacy 

program? 

2) How successful has the project been 

for promoting child and parent literacy, learning and achievement?

3) How successful has the 

project been in providing support to migrant educators and families through the sharing 

of successful practices related to identification, recruitment and services to MEES 

families, instruction, and locating and sharing community resources to improve 

educational opportunities of migrant families?

4) How 

successful has the professional development component of the project been in increasing 

the ability to support the success of migrant families?

5) How successful has the project been as a 
model of support for promoting and disseminating family literacy services that may be 

replicable for other project sites?