After your YAC decides how many grants to give away, how many organizations to give to and how much it can/is willing to grant, the next step is making sure the grant cycle goes as smoothly as possible. Remember: life is full of ups and downs so plan for problems to arise and your group will be able to handle them calmly rather than frantically.
Tips for conducting a smooth grant cycle:
- Review the current grant application to ensure it is up-to-date and that the questions are relevant to what your YAC is looking for.
- Identify a timeline for the grant cycle period in which your YAC will accept applications.
- Communicate to the public the appropriate grant amount to apply for.
- Develop a one page Fact Sheet that details the above information, along with the criteria for the proposals.
- Develop a press release to send out to media outlets to promote your grant cycle (Consider utilizing other mediums to advertise your grant cycle (webpage, email, Facebook, have your affiliate ED send to their network, etc.)
- Monitor your grant proposals as they come in to ensure completeness and accuracy.
- Schedule a time and date for reviewing grants (be sure to allow plenty of time for the committee to have a healthy and fruitful discussion).
- Develop a grant review score sheet to evaluate and rate the proposals.
- Develop your final funding decisions based on the majority of the review committee’s approval.
- Develop a process for announcing and awarding the grants (i.e. grant award letter, grant reception and presentation, etc.)
What NOT to do:
- Wait until the last minute to determine who and how many organizations to fund or how much money your YAC can give
- Schedule a grant review meeting that does not give your YAC enough time to review all proposals and make an informed and thoughtful decision
- Fail to promote the open grant cycle through all appropriate communication channels
- Fail to have clear application instructions and criteria for applicants to read and follow
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