Grant Application Best Practices
Grant writing plays a pivotal role in the sustainability and development of tribal and native communities across the country.
Successful grant applications empower tribes to assert their sovereignty, amplify their voices in policy-making arenas, and forge partnerships that foster long-term socioeconomic growth.
The August CoP session featured a panel of grant experts who discussed strategies for writing successful grants and attracting other capital, common mistakes and other barriers to the grant writing process, and opportunities to reduce or eliminate barriers.
Subject matter experts
Key Takeaways
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Building genuine relationships is essential and can help lead you to successful projects. Find your local contacts, visit with them, and ask questions. Economic Development Representatives (EDR) want to answer your questions and help you. There are no wrong answers. Project officers can help you through the process -- keep close contact with them.
Grants are not just about writing proposals; grant writing is a comprehensive process that involves engaging with the community, tribal leaders, elders, the youth, and making sure that the projects you are developing are not only culturally sensitive but truly aligned with the community's needs and values.
Engagement builds trust and sets the foundation for a long-term collaboration. Building genuine relationships will help immensely in the long run.
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NOFOs are description of grant programs and their subsequent application processes. They outline important details like deadlines, award amounts, reporting requirements, and the entities that are eligible to apply. After getting pass the bureaucracy, NOFOs will give you the “answers to the test”. Pay close attention to NOFOs as they - literally - spell out the evaluation criteria for the grant application.
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It's common for grant writers to answer application questions without directly answering the question. Doing so negatively impacts application scoring and ultimately jeopardizes the applicant's chances at being awarded funds.
While it's easy to get 'lost in the weeds' when writing answers to complicated questions, at a minimum stick to the direct question text and build out from there.
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Submit clear and unmistakable budgets. Grant officials realistically do take the time to look through your budgets with a close eye - if your budget is vague or confusing, it may cause complications that result in the dismissal of your application.
When creating a budget, it is critical to set aside funds and staff hours for reporting and administration for the project. You do not want to run out of funds at the reporting stage, especially if reporting is a required portion of the grant.
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Help is there to go pass the conceptual stage. Economic Development Representatives (EDR) can help walk you pass the conceptual stages.
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Grant writing should be more than just about securing funding, it should be about empowering Indigenous communities to lead, build their capacity, and develop leadership from within.
This might involve designing community-led initiatives, offering training programs that enhance local skills, or even developing culturally relevant evaluation metrics that truly reflect the community's values and way of knowing.
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Unfortunately, the grant system is often rooted in colonial practices where non-Indigenous entities control funding decisions and they impose western norms and follow top-down approaches that may not align with indigenous ways of knowing or priorities.
This can lead to projects that aren't culturally relevant or sustainable, and in some cases, even create or perpetuate dependencies rather than fostering self-determination.
An example is how reimbursement funding and matching requirements do not always work for Indigenous communities, especially rural communities with limited capacity. These communities could have projects that will be successful but do not have the discretionary funds to meet those requirements.
The EDA is willing to work with Tribal entities that cannot meet certain criteria. Additionally, both Executive Order (E.O.) 14112 and Section 5 of E.O. 13175 can address these concerns.
Steve Castaner Intro and Key Takeaways
Ernest Weston Key Takeaways
Liz Kinne Intro and Key Takeaways
Lisa Serrano Intro and Key Takeaways
“56%”
Session Summary
Securing grants enables tribal governments, organizations, and enterprises to fund crucial initiatives such as healthcare improvements, housing, economic development, education programs, infrastructure projects, and cultural revitalization efforts
The panel of subject matter experts answered a list of moderator questions and questions from participants about grant writing. A quick summary of the answers is below. Click the video clips for the full discussion.
What are some things to do before tribal communities begin the grant writing process?
How to prepare for writing a grant
Liz noted the importance of a planning document and traditions. Oral traditions of Indigenous communities, although instrumental to communities, can present a barrier to grant writing. Liz asks “how can we overcome the need of having to have that documentation or that plan written down?”
Starting a relationship with a field representative is a good start before writing a grant. With the representative you can talk about your plan, you can talk about the direction you're going, and they can give you some guidance on what types of information would support an application.
Ernest shares that when working as a tribal planner, one of the things that kept him afloat and moving forward were the relationships he built. He shares an example of needing a map with underground utilities, he was able to get the map with the relationships he built.
Have you either seen or been involved with some unique processes that tribal communities have done to engage their larger community in this discussion?
Engaging your community to support applications
Liz shared that a project with a yearlong engagement process was very beneficial to the planning team. The engagement team met with met with different departments, leaders, elders, youth and asks questions about the needs and wants of the community.
Ernest discussed his time as a tribal planner and working with a partnership planning grant. The grant gave opportunity to get as creative as you want to be. Engage with surveys and listening sessions. It is also an opportunity for tribes to exercise their self-determination through data sovereignty.
Steve explained that planning for the engagement process needs to be intentional from beginning to end. “At the end of the day, a good planning process not only gets you feedback, but it also engages people enough that you find champions that can help you carry the water on projects or ideas or concepts.”
How might Indigenous communities identify if there's an opportunity to go after a grant program for a project that they have?
Identifying what grants to go after
Ernest shares two rules for going after grants:
Be mindful of whose money you're taking (what obligations will you have?)
Don’t apply if you cannot comply
Liz advised to figure out where the tribe or community currently is, and then find funding sources that align with where they are, given the stage of the project or program. Be mindful of planning fatigue a community may have. Secondly, ensure sustainability of the program. Ask what will it take to sustain these jobs and programs. (Grant funding is not always the best for this).
Different ways that you either would encourage tribal leadership to participate or have seen where tribal leadership has engaged in the grant process?
The role of tribal laders plus compliance barriers and how to overcome them
Lisa shared that tribal chairs, tribal grant writers, and various government personnel often call the DOE and are engaged frequently. She also used an email marketing approach to get 588 registrations.
Having an application process spelled out with a timeline of the different key activities encourages engagement.
Ensure leadership and all layers of government is aware of your timeline and progress. Be intentional on how you engage with tribes.
It is important to record your engagement with communities during the grant writing process. Take pictures and write about your engagement. (Most the of time it’s required)
How to Lessen The Barriers for Indigenous Communities to Comply with Grant Apps
Liz mentioned how she is working with tribe applying for a grant through a federal agency that requires a partnership with a nonprofit organization. This is a barrier for this rural community as there are not suitable partners for this program, despite the tribe ticking all the other boxes.
Ernest mentions how Liz’s situation is a opportunity to exercise self-determination. Look at the Executive Order (E.O.) 14112. Section 5 talks about waving certain statutory requirements. A participate in the chat also mentions E.O. 13175. He advises to advocate for yourself for higher grant rates even if the agency does not have to necessarily grant it.
Lisa mentioned how it is a possibility for the tribe to work with a national nonprofit or a nonprofit virtually to meet the requirement.
What are some reporting, administration or after-grant process for grant writers to be aware of?
Dealing with reporting, administration, and the after-grant processes
Look at matching requirements before being awarded a grant to ensure you can meet these grants. Liz mentions how reimbursable grants are difficult for Indigenous communities with limited capacity.
Look at the reporting requirements before you apply. Ensure you can manage the reporting necessary to meet requirements. Do not take reporting lightly.
Ernest shared the experience of reimbursement grants not working for tribes. He mentioned how it is difficult for infrastructure projects as “infrastructure is the baseline. It's a foundational piece for economic development.”
Advice on how communities can best present the impact of a funded project aligning with granting agencies expectations, but yet still meets tribal communities where they are
Ensure you understand how the agency is using terminology. Terminology will differ from agencies and levels of government. Understanding what the agency is looking for will help with making your project competitive
Story telling may not be a part of the formal process but it can help with visibility. Liz said “Storytelling should be just as important as the hard facts and figures of what was achieved.”
Pitfalls or Sticky Points to Avoid for Tribal Communities.
Sticky points to avoid plus final advice for grant writers in Indian Country
It is important to take your time when applying for grants. It is easy to feel overwhelmed applying to many grants. Fully vet grant programs with tribal employees and leadership you’re working with. Do not rush. Liz advises to focus on empowerment and think through 7 generation philosophy. Think for long-term of new programs. Identify sources of revenue to keep going.
Lisa advised to ensure your certs and reps are current on SAMS to keep the process continuous. She says anyone in the grant process can go on SAMS to certify.
Have confidence that you will be awarded. Do not only go after competitive grants but direct grants as well. Reach out to your project officer as she/he is your friend.
As shown from our Knowledge Bank, Kristy McCarthy Weight from Blue Water Grant Development, LLC says a common mistake is “not giving yourself enough time for implementation or not budgeting enough funding for what you want to do. Request the maximum amount of time allowed unless it is a very basic project.” “Never submit current costs in your budget because best case scenario you will be putting shovels in the ground a year after you submit the application so always factor in inflation.”
The EDA Corner
Economic Development Representatives (EDR) are the locally based representatives of EDA. EDRs work with local, state, and Tribal governments, as well as other organizations in their assigned areas to apply economic development practices to local needs by developing plans and projects for federal collaboration and investment. EDRs are there to help Tribal communities with grant applications and clarify what is needed. Do not hesitate to contact your local representatives and ask questions.
Throughout the discussion both Ernest and Steve highlighted the importance of sharing your story with federal agencies. The EDA wants to hear about how these projects have impacted tribes, they look for these stories and share them even if it is not a part of the formal grant writing process.
Both Steve and Ernest mention how the EDA is tries to best accommodate where they can. The EDA does not have partnership requirements and waives restricting criteria when appropriate. They look to understand each Tribal community by looking at the whole picture with demographics. This sometimes can give the community higher grant rates. Additionally, the EDA has expanded the definition of Indian tribe to also include for profit entities that are wholly owned by a tribe. This is a game changer for a lot of communities and can help with Tribal economic development.
Ernest also advised not to stop communicating with project officers or EDRs. Sometimes grants just goes by the wayside due to lack of communication. You don’t want to be out of compliance and be on the treasury's do not pay list. Communication is very important!
Success Stories/Current Projects:
Funding Resources:
Closing Thoughts
Resources like the subject matter experts and organizations they represent are available to help tribes and their grant writing processes.
There were many questions posed by participants during the session. Those questions, with answers from the Resource Group and fellow participants, will continue to be posted in the Knowledge Bank on the CoP website. If you have questions that you want answered, please ask in the LinkedIn group or share it with the administrators.