The document discusses the steps involved in writing an effective grant proposal. It compares the process to pitching a movie script to a producer. An effective proposal must outline the project's goals and limitations, and convince the funder that it will address an important social issue. It must include a need statement, objectives, methodology, and management plan. Following these basic steps will help the grant writer secure funding and achieve their goals, just as an effective script pitch can help a screenwriter get their movie funded.

1. Writing a proposal is very similar to giving a winning presentation to a movie producer who wants
to hear every little detail aboutyour movie script. When presenting your script, your proposal has to
outline all of the projected successes and limitations ofwhat’s foreseeable in the movie. And similar to
grant writing, your organization will need to meetits objective ofhow the movie will affect society. When
following the basic steps of grant writing, it’s important for the grantee to include all of the necessary
steps to describe how the movie begins with a need statement, the highlights of the film with
methodology and how it will end with an objective. In order to attract the attention ofthe producer, itis
the responsibility ofthe screenwriter to be an expertat explaining the plotto how his/her objective will
be metby the end ofthe movie. The grantee also has the responsibility ofproviding a heavily outlined
explanation ofwhy the movie should be funded by an executive producer or grantor:
For guaranteed success with attracting funders to your organization, the proposal writer has to
scripttheir expertise as the hero ofthe movie, as the heroine, the grant writer identifies a problem and
presents a solution as the expertofthe organization. With proposal writing, your Requestfor Proposal
should convince the funder ofyour vision on how to resolve socially pressing issues. The bestapproach
is to follow the first three steps ofbasic grant writing. The first step to grant writing is preparation, the
grantee has to compete with existing organizations in finding the bestresource to achieve the above set
goal, in addition to that, the grant writer has to find the bestfunding source to address a socially
pressing issue like--the epidemic ofrecidivism. The bestroute to lowering recidivism rates is to sponsor
reentry candidates into federally funded programs—called reentry programs. States rely on federal
funding to distribute ideas into strategies that will reduce recidivism on a national scale. With reentry
programs, research has shown slightdifferentials of lowing the chances ofan ex-offender being
vulnerable to the probability ofreincarceration through job readiness, substance abuse treatmentand
housing assistance. As the playwright ofyour movie, itis the responsibility ofthe grantee to clearly

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communicate his perspective on the methodology ofwhat will alleviate rates in recidivism and how the
community benefits from increased public safety.
In order to solicit an audience to your cause, the grantee must know the necessary steps in how
to prepare a proposal for consideration. The proposal writer has to establish their organization as an
entity or a social service agency. Within the social service category, “community based organizations
are groups ofany size, whether incorporated or not, whose mission is to serve the particular geographic
or ethnic community in which they are located, rather than an entire city” (Karsh, Fox, 8). As a start-up
agency within a community, gaining federal funding for such a process is a long and arduous and
selective. A reentry program ofthis magnitude may have a budget of over a million dollars and itmay be
difficult to compete againstexisting and well-established facilities. So therefore,itmay be mutually
beneficial to build partnerships with a similar program design and serve as consultantor grant manager
for an existing reentry agency (10). Another alternative to starting an agency is to ask the supportfrom
an elected politician, “your elected officials are an important resource for funding…they can help you
find and obtain grants…they have small amounts of state or local funding at their discretion” (29). For
example, ifyou are planning a federal proposal, “it’s a good idea to talk with congressional staff…you
may want a letter from the representative in supportofyour proposal” (28). With a congressional letter
of support, a new grantee could use this as documentation to submit with an application for federal
support. With time and patience, the grants manager will have the backing ofa politician, the experience
from an existing agency and the confidence to give a federally funded program a clear and convincing
vision of how to secure public safety, lower crime rates in local neighborhoods while discovering the
bestconcepts ofteaching life skills to ex-offenders under the entity ofa social services agency.

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In order to attract funding to an existing problem like recidivism, the nextstep is to substantiate a
need to resolve recidivism rates within the community. The grantee will have to demonstrate this claim
with a significant amount of data that correlates with an existing problem. For instance, crime is a major
issue and it affects public safety. If the proposal substantiates the need to reduce crime by helping
newly released offenders become housed and employed and say goodbye to a lifestyle ofdrugs and
crime, the community would feel safer and crime rates would be reduced.Pathologies such as crime
and drugs increase the risk ofpublic safety and residents within the community don’tfeel safe. If your
need aligns with the proper sponsor, Deborah Ward, “Writing Grant Proposals that Win” suggests that
you “base your need statement on the funder’s RFP guidelines [by] establishing your eligibility to apply
and identifying which ofthe funder’s interests you are attempting to address” (Ward, 2). In addition to
matching your need statementto the funders’ interests, is to show evidence with visual proof. Your
evidence may include visuals like charts and bar graphs and eye-catching images (3). The use ofbars
and charts coupled with national statistics will show that you are an expertofyour organization or a
socially pressing issue.Itis the responsibility ofthe proposal writer to establish a clear-cut vision ofwhat
the organization will need to move the objective forward.
The second step ofwriting a proposal is stating the intent ofthe project, in other words, stating
your objective. This section ofgrants writing “indicates what the projectwill achieve and the time it will
take to reach its goals” (Ward, 5). The objective serves as a roadmap or timeframe that leads us to what
the situation will look like after the project is completed. For example, ifthe proposal writer wanted to
give a clear explanation of the intention of the project, they would say:
By the end of this project, the objective of reentry services is to increase public safety
and to prepare ex-convicts to live as law-abiding citizens within their communities. As compared

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from the data used from a similar study in 2012-2013, by the Department of Bureau of Justice
Statistics, recidivism rates will decrease by 10% within three years (www.crv.gov).
By the end of 2019, the number of surveyed ex-offenders who benefits from the
objective(s) of reentry program will secure public safety, give ex-offenders stable housing, be
employable, live drug free, report less criminal behavior and live as productive citizens within their
communities.
With this in mind, reentry programs are typically divided into three- phases: programs thatprepare
offenders to reenter society while they are in prison, programs that connectex-offenders with services
immediately after they are released from prison, and programs that provide long-term supportand
supervision for ex-offenders as they settle into communities permanently. With such an overarching role
in the lives ofex-offenders, 10% ofthis population will more than likely transition into society much
smoother than the other 90% of those who did notsuccessfully complete the three phases ofreentry
into society.
The third step to grant making is Methodology. This particular section highlights the necessary
activities to lead reentry candidates toward successful completion ofthe program. As stated by
Deborah Ward, “Writing Grant Proposals that Win,” she says; “the description ofactivities should focus
on the aspects ofthe projectthat will resolve or preventthe problems identified in the need statementby
obtaining the results promised in the objective” (6). The author stresses the importance oflisting the
necessary steps thatwill “help move ittowards the objective…by listing the activities that will lead to the
success ofthe project…[the objective] should be fully described in the proposal.” In addition to listing the
objective,the writer should include a program description in this section, “this describes and justifies the

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approach used to attack the problem.” Next, the grant writer should include a management plan, “this
explains how the projectwill be managed, and who will manage it;” for example, the proposal writer has
to include a detailed description ofthe role ofthe projectdirector and all the members ofthe supporting
staff (6). This is a short statement to describe the role ofthe projectmanager:
The operation of the project is the project director’s responsibility. The director reports to the chief
operations manager and the executive director of the organization. The director directs and
supervises project implementation; coordinates and monitors the project operations with the
participating grantors while monitoring the budget. The project director also prepares the program
reports; supervises the development of the information system; and gives oral and written reports
to the grantor. The project director will supervise the mental health staff, job resource
coordinators, substance abuse counselors and security staff members (Ward,8).
And lastly, Ward suggests including other sub-headings like,who will be trained and how; and what
personnel will contribute towards the success ofthe project. Additionally, the grantor will want a full
description ofthe facilities that will be used throughoutthe progression ofthe project. By listing the sub -
headings ofthe activities of the projectitwill give the grantor a vivid imagination ofhow the objective of
increasing public safety and helping newly released offenders become realized as a means ofreducing
recidivism rates. As time goes on, the grantwriter who wants to attract the attention of federal funders
will establish a track record ofsuccess as a grants manager; and from there, he/she will become the
grantee who knows how to paint the bigger picture on how to secure public safety and reduce rates in
recidivism.

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If we return to our analogy ofpresenting a movie scriptto a producer, the grantwriter has to bring
awareness to a problem and presenta solution. It is the responsibility ofthe proposal writer to establish
a clear-cut vision ofwhat the organization will need to move the objective forward. Similar to presenting
the highlights of the movie to a producer, the grantee has to indicate what the projectwill achieve and
the time it will take to reach its goals. The objective serves as a roadmap or timeframe that leads the
producer to understand what the movie will illicitand the grantor a detailed description ofthe long range
plans of what the success ofthe projectwill look like once it’s completed. With this in mind, the grant
writer gives a clear description to the producer or funder on how the movie will end. If successful, the
screenwriter will have his movie funded by multiple producers on a consistentand competitive basis.