The benefits of grant funding are all around us. We often don’t even notice or even know. But each and every person living in the United States has experienced them.
What are Grants?
The New Oxford American Dictionary defines a grant as “a sum of money given by an organization, especially a government, for a particular purpose.”
Grants.gov: A grant is one of the ways the government funds ideas and projects to provide public services and stimulate the economy.
Smartegrants: Federal grants are taxpayer contracts that pay for schools, fire trucks, hospitals, roads, water treatment, food safety, and so much more. Nearly every part of your day is made better by a federal grant.
Grants are funding awarded under contract for the performance of a specific activity.
To be a grant, it must contain these components:
- Contractual – If awarded, the grant is a contractual agreement between the nonprofit and the grantmaker. The nonprofit must follow all the rules laid out by the grantmaker.
- Outcomes/Deliverables – The nonprofit agree to produce something as a result of being funded.
- Timeline – A nonprofit lays out the timeline for the project/program they are seeking funding for. Grantmakers generally do not fund open-ended applications.
- Reporting – There will be reporting when receiving funding from grants. Generally, the grantmaker will request at least a grant report when all the funds have been used. Also the nonprofit will have to report to the state and federal government the receiving of funds.
#GrantsWork
We believe grants make a difference in communities each and every day. And we want to know how your grant-funded programs are changing lives. Share your story by using #GrantsWork on social media and on the Grant Professionals Association website.
