Grant Procedures: The Seven Step Process

PRINT The Seven Steps (short version)

Step 1:  Develop Grant Project Idea Grant Interest Form
     Grant Seeker:

• Develops the project idea through discussions with Department Head and Grant Development Specialist to obtain support for processing the Grant Interest Form.
• Completes and submits the Grant Interest Form to the Grant Development Specialist.

Step 2:  Prepare Project Concept (Project Concept Form and Signature Approval Form)
     Grant Seeker:

• Submits an overview of the project concept and activities that addresses essential information required by the funding source and the College.
• Obtains the required signature from the Department Dean for authorizing further pursuit of grant proposal.
• Grant Development Specialist and Review Team evaluate the Project Concept and Signature Approval Form to approve or disapprove further pursuit.

Step 3:  Prepare Grant Proposal Contents (Grant Preparation Requirements)
      Principal Investigator in collaboration with Grant Development Specialist:

• Reviews funding source solicitation and submission requirements.
• Creates proposal time line.
• Prepares project content for budget development.

Step 4:  Finalize Proposal and Obtain Signature Approvals
       Grant Development Specialist:

• Reviews the final grant proposal and budget draft.
• Confirms that funding source proposal solicitation requirements and signature approvals are met.
• Forwards the final grant proposal and budget to the Director of Institutional Effectiveness, Research and Planning for final signature approval(s).

Step 5:  Submit Grant Proposal to Funding Source (Submission Requirements)

• Grant Development Specialist submits via electronic or other means the final authorized copy of the grant proposal and budget to the funding source.
• Principal Investigator collaborates with the Grant Development Specialist by providing required project information for the electronic submission process.

   
Step 6:  Announce Grant Proposal Award Status (Acceptance of Grant Award)

• Upon receiving formal notification from the funding source of an award status, the President will make award announcement.
• When a grant is not awarded, the Grant Development Specialist will obtain a copy of the funding source reviewers’ comments to share with the Principal Investigator.

Step 7: Implement and Manage Grant Activities (Implementation and Management requirements)
       Principal Investigator:

• Administers grant including implementation, management of activities, participant tracking, budget, and preparation of all required reports.
• Prepares and forwards annual report and other required reports to the Grant Development Specialist.

Tips for Developing the Project Idea

All proposed project ideas MUST be in line with the institutions strategic plan, overall mission and goals, and have Presidential approval.

The approval process, which allows devotion of institutional time and effort to the development of grant projects and competitive external funding proposals, requires an answer of "yes" to the following questions in order to begin.

• Do you have a creative, innovative idea for improving teaching, learning, and/or support services related to the mission of the college?
  
  
• Have you discussed it with faculty/staff in your department/division?
  
  
• Is there consensus that your idea might work to improve student success, retention, graduation, transfer rates?
  
  
• Would your idea result in outcomes that improve faculty knowledge, skills, use of technology in teaching, management of teaching and learning, integration of learning into workplace skills?
  
  
• Will your idea help the college to achieve goals and outcomes identified in its institutional strategic plan?

After sufficient research, the next step is to develop a proposed concept which provides enough information to discuss the project with and obtain approval from the Department Head, and Vice President. These approvals are necessary before significant time and effort may be devoted to:

• development of a project,
• development of a proposal to fund the project, and
• commitment of staffing, including faculty, and resources required to implement the project when funded.

THE CONCEPT

As an expansion of the project idea, the project summary provides enough information to discuss the project with and obtain signature approval for further pursuit of the grant proposal. The project summary can easily be expanded into the project abstract often required in the solicitation by the funding source.

Project Concept Form includes:

1. Project Name
2. Description of Need for the Project
3. Measurable Goals and Objectives to Meet the Need
4. Anticipated Outcomes Related to Department/Division/Pellissippi State Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives
5. Rationale to Support the Need for the Project: Identify Other Similar Successful Models/Plans and Documented Outcomes
6. Description of What Is Needed to Implement Proposed Project: Funds for Personnel, Travel, Equipment, Supplies, Consultants, Evaluators, Other
7. Provide Estimated Costs Based on Actual Specifications/Descriptions/Estimates of Time/Effort/Equipment/Supplies/Other Required to Support Implementation of Project (Grant Development office can provide assistance with budget development).

Identification of Funding Sources

Routinely, information concerning potential grant sources is received in a variety of ways, through requested funding searches, through requests to partner from other organizations and simply by word of mouth.

The Grant Development Office is on a distribution list for several state and federal agencies and regularly receives Grant Solicitations and grant announcements in this manner. In addition, the Grant Development Specialist reviews various publications, newsletters, and web sites to identify funding sources. Individual administrators and faculty also receives information which alerts them to special grant opportunities. However this information is received, all materials concerning grant possibilities should be shared with the Grant Development Office for review and a Grant Interest form completed and submitted to the Grant Development Specialist. The Grant Development Specialist will then ensure that area/discipline-specific program announcements or solicitations (ex. student services, arts/humanities, technologies, science, math and engineering) are reviewed and routed to the appropriate offices. See Grant Opportunities Bulletin.

The Grant Development Office will initiate Identification of Funding Sources with departments and divisions for a specific project idea or by performing informal needs assessments. Special requests for identification of funding for a specific project/program from departments/divisions should be identified on a Grant Interest form and forwarded to the Grant Development Office.

Proposal Development

If the program announcement or solicitation calls for a program that has an Institutional-wide focus, the Grant Development Office takes the lead in coordinating proposal development. This role may include gathering suggestions from faculty, staff, convening planning sessions, developing timetables and writing assignments in consultation with others working on the project, writing parts or the entire proposal and preparing final proposal for submission. The Grant Development Specialist also develops special grant proposals requested by the President. If the program announcement or solicitation is area or discipline focused, the appropriate administrator(s) and/or assigned faculty will be involved in the proposal development. The Grant Development Specialist and the IERP can provide assistance in data/information collection, writing, editing, and proposal preparation.

All grant applications and proposals MUST be reviewed by and submitted through the Grants Development Office.

The development of a competitive proposal to obtain external/supplemental funding for a specific project is similar to researching and writing a major thesis. Funding sources have specific guidelines and priorities with meticulous outlines for information that assures the proposed project has a good chance of meeting their priorities. Funding source guidelines, outlines, and priorities must be followed exactly for proposals to be competitive.

STEPS FOR DEVELOPING A WINNING PROPOSAL

1. Have an approved project abstract.
   
   
2. Identify key staff to be involved in project/proposal development.
   
   
3. Develop consensus for funding source and obtain Request for Proposal (RFP) or Proposal Solicitation and Application Guidelines.
   
   
4. Evaluate approved abstract ideas with the priorities from funding source guidelines, priorities, and application process.
   
   
5. Complete research process to assure best practices for solving the identified problem/need.
   
   
6. Develop plan for implementing proposed project (solution to problem or need).
   
   
7. Develop specific budget estimate of funding required to implement proposed project.
   
   
8. Develop the proposal.

TYPICAL PROPOSAL SEQUENCE

1. Cover Letter
2. Title Page
3. Abstract/Summary
4. Introduction
5. Needs/Problem Statement
6. Measurable Goals/Objectives
7. Methods/Timeline
8. Evaluation Plan
9. Plan for Continuation of Project After Grant Funding Ends
10. Plan for Dissemination
11. Budget and Detailed Budget Notes
12. Attachments: Research References, Support Letters, Memoranda of Agreement, Resumés, etc.

PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT TIMELINE

After a project idea has been approved for proposal development a timeline must be established. Funding source guidelines, regulations, and deadlines often force short timelines. For large multi-year funding requests, the development of a project and proposal will require six months at a minimum and can require up to a year of planning and development work. Unfortunately, funding source guidelines often are not disseminated early enough to allow that much time.

Time determines the level of service that the Grant Development Office can provide. The final proposal, budget and signature approval form must be received in the Grant Development Office 10 business days prior to the funding source submittal date. For electronic Submission, the amount of time it can take to upload an application will vary depending on factors such as the size of the applications, the speed of the internet connection and/or computer technical difficulties.

PROPOSAL WRITING BASICS

1. FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS of Funding Source Guidelines EXACTLY.
2. Make proposal neat, clean, and easy to read.
3. Write proposal in simple, clear English; refrain from using jargon or acronyms.
4. Comply with page limitations.
5. Be positive. You are offering a funding source the best opportunity to achieve their goals.
6. Avoid unsupported assumptions.
7. Include current research and statistical data to support the rationale for the project proposed.

All grant applications and proposals MUST be reviewed by the Grant Development Specialist and submitted through the Grants Development Office. Final draft Grant Applications and proposals MUST be ready for review including signature approval form at least ten business days prior to the due date.

Application requiring submittal as an e-Grant process by the funding agency will be entered via the Grant Development Office. For electronic Submission, the amount of time it can take to upload an application will vary depending on factors such as the size of the applications, the speed of the internet connection and/or computer technical difficulties. The Grant Development Office will retain a master electronic copy of the final grant application/proposal.

Submitting a Grant Application

Before any grant application is submitted, the following conditions must be met:

1. the proposed project is related to the college’s mission, goals, and strategic plan;
2. the person(s) who will direct and/or supervise the project have been involved in the proposal development process;
3. the college has identified and can provide the required financial commitment
4. there is a high probability that the proposed project can operate within total grant and financial commitment;
5. the project budget has been reviewed and approved by the Business Office and the appropriate vice president, dean and/or division head.

All grant applications and proposals MUST be reviewed the Grant Development Specialist and submitted through the Grants Development Office. Final draft Grant Applications and proposals MUST be ready for reviews at least ten business days prior to the due date.

Any application requiring submittal as an e-Grant process by the funding agency will be entered via the Grant Development Office. The Grant Development Office will retain a master electronic copy of the final grant application/proposal.

Acceptance of Grant Award

The Grant Development Office is responsible for coordinating the following:

1. negotiating award amounts with funders
2. notification for acceptance of grant awards, terms and conditions;
3. reviewing funder requirements prior to acceptance by the President;
4. reviewing project budgets.

The Business Office should be provided with a full copy of the grant proposal only after notification of funding has been received. Original award letters should be retained in the Business Office. Copies of official grant award letters should be provided to the Grant Development Office, the President’s Office and project office.

There are several political protocols relating to the release of information of a grant award, therefore the President’s Office will acknowledge the appropriate time for public release of the award announcement.

Post Award

The Grant Development Specialist will convene a meeting with the Business Office and the project director/manager to review grant requirements, progress report dates and any unique characteristics pertaining to the project or funding agency. A full team meeting will be held to present the awarded project and ensure all assigned faculty and staff understand their roles and responsibilities and their reporting processes.

The original notification of and the acceptance of a Grant Award will be filed in the Business Office. A copy will be filed in the Grant Development Office.

The Grant Development Office can assist Project Directors with the following post award project activity:

1. reporting to funders on project progress
2. coordinating site visits by funders
3. applying for grant continuations and extensions
4. closing out projects
5. retaining project records
6. facilitating audit requests

Project Management and Records Maintenance

The assigned project manager is responsible for the overall management of the grant, including compliance with applicable federal, state and /or local regulations, completion of required reports, and for communicating project results to the college community. The project manager is also responsible for maintaining all fiscal records associated with the grant and for reconciling such records with the official expenditure reports prepared and disseminated by the Business Office. Monthly reconciliation is advised so that questions or problems can be identified and addressed immediately.

All grants are subject to the operating requirements of the state of Tennessee, the Tennessee Board of Regents, and to any federal and/ or departmental regulations issued by the funding agency.

The project manager is responsible for maintaining all required records dealing with grant execution and achievement. It is generally recommended that all such records be maintained for a period of at least five years, unless the funding agency specifies an alternative length of time. In the event of a program audit, records should be organized in such a way that they can be easily reviewed electronically and by an individual unfamiliar with the project or appropriate college personnel.

The Business office is responsible for maintaining official fiscal records, including expenditure documents, for all grant projects. Records are typically maintained for 5 years following the end of the grant period.

A copy of the annual report will be forwarded to the Grant Development Office.

Additional Management Standards

SAC’s Criteria for Accreditation Section VI, 6.5 Externally Funded Grants and Contracts; TBR Policy 1-03-02-10 Approval of Agreements; TBR Policy A-010 Academic Program Proposals-inclusive.

last updated 6/10/2009 nnb