I do not claim to have all the answers, but after two decades of grant writing, I know a thing or two about how funders operate. And like most grant professionals, I have thoughts and feelings on how this world of philanthropy can improve.

No matter what you think about the United States government these days, one thing I hope we can all agree on is the transparency in which federal grants are shared. Let me count thy ways:

• Grant programs are listed in the appropriations act of each federal department as part of the annual budget process.
• Our friends at grants.gov have created a FREE central clearing house for grant prospect research related to federal grants – both current and days gone by.
• Federal departmental websites (like the Department of Justice, Department of Education, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development, to name a few), plus many sub-agencies (like the Centers for Disease Control, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and more) all share grant information on their websites.
• Each announcement of a grant opportunity comes with a set of guidelines (often referred to as Requests for Proposals, Notice of Funding Opportunities, or Funding Opportunity Announcements), and those guidelines are full of helpful information, including:
  • The deadline for submitting proposals,
  • Where to find the application,
  • How much funding is available,
  • How many applications the funder expects to award,
  • Who is eligible,
  • Contact information for the program officer who you can call or email with questions,
  • What the funding priorities are, and
  • So much more.

Federal grants often require hours and hours of work to assemble a proposal. And grant management comes with its own set of hoops and nightmares. However federal funders are transparent about the availability of funding, how to apply, and how much money is available. All this information is easily accessible to anyone willing to look, and other than your time, there is no cost to getting what you need to assess if the grant and funder are the right fit for your organization and funder.

Then, there is the flip side to that coin: the world of private funding. Sure, foundations and corporations are required to file a 990 Form annually and share some relevant information, but that’s where the requirement of transparency ends. From there, what you can easily find will vary from funder to funder.

Here’s where I get frustrated.

Some funders have websites, but most of them don’t. The ones with websites don’t always offer very much information; many don’t even provide you with a process for applying to their funding.

There is no central location for nonprofits and other eligible recipients to conduct helpful grant prospect research unless you are willing to pay for a database or poke around the IRS website.

If foundations truly exist to fulfill their missions (like ending hunger, homelessness, and poverty or increasing access to education, quality jobs, and more), shouldn’t they shout it from the rooftops? Don’t they want the nonprofits who align with their mission and priorities to find them? Don’t they want applications that meet their needs?

If you are like me and think the answer to these questions is all a resounding YES, then we need more transparency with funders. A great place to start is having a website that nonprofits can easily find, with helpful information to ensure applications can be submitted timely and accurately. If you want to hear more about this, check out the latest edition of the Fundraising HayDay podcast here: https://haydayservices.com/websites-every-funder-needs-one/.

Accessible information is just the first step in a more equitable world. And if the federal government has laid the groundwork for how it could be, private funders have an excellent guidepost for what to do. First step, funder websites. Next step, philanthropy which will lead to lasting change for the better.

(A girl can dream, can’t she?)

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