Grant Management 101:

1. Grant Management 101: Processing & Mngt. of Grants

2. What You Need to Know • Preparation • Investigation • Request for Proposal (RFP) • Writing the Grant • Submitting the Grant • Notification of Award (NOA) • Project Implementation • Project Completion

3. Words to Live By(Grant Buzzwords) • RFP • PI (co-PI) • Proposal (grant proposal) • Accounts • Sub-account • CAS (Cost Accounting Standards) Third Party Match

4. Words to Live By(Grant Buzzwords) • DSR • Sponsored Programs • NOA • Sub-awards • Indirect Costs • Unrecovered Indirect • Match • In-Kind

5. Project Preparation • Questions to ask yourself: • What are you trying to achieve? • How practical is it for your situation? • Is there a need for the project? • Are adequate resources available? • Is there support for the project? • Stakeholder ·County • UF-IFAS · Colleagues • Granting Agency · You

6. When Life is Not Perfect… • Make sure that everyone knows why this is not a good idea. • Try to garner support by showing the pros and cons of the project and/or grant. • Illustrate specific examples of where a similar project was not successful. • Just say “No”.

7. …But You Have to Do It Anyway. • Set clear and concise goals. • Communicate at every level. • Delegate the responsibility. • Generate buy-in from the group. • Include the decision-makers. • Have distinct and reasonable goals.

8. Investigating for the “Best Fit” • Where are those pesky grants? • Do your research • Investigate RFPs that look “too good too be true.” Usually they are. • Make sure you understand the requirements of the grant proposal. • Make sure you have the tools you need to successfully implement the proposal.

9. Understanding the RFP • Read it all the way through. • Read it again and highlight key points. • Color code different parts of the RFP. • Pre-preparation • Grant writing • Post-preparation • Submission • Delegate RFP activities.

10. Read the RFP Thoroughly! • Don’t skim through the RFP. Read it carefully, as if it were a contract. • Highlight important information and specific requirements. • May seem redundant (i.e., # of originals) • May seem childish (i.e., specific colors) • May seem unreasonable (i.e., special fonts) • May seem impractical (i.e., no e-mail submissions)

11. Weeders!!! • It is their money. Do what they ask. • Each agency has their own reasons for their guidelines. • Some agencies can be persnickety. • They DO want to give their money away. • They want to look good. • Usually, not concerned with other agencies rules.

12. Grant Writing 101 • Give the agency exactly what they are asking for, nothing more, nothing less. • Don’t add superfluous information. It will not help and it might hurt. • Ask for advise at all levels. • Notify IFAS Sponsored Programs that you are applying for this grant. • They will be prepared to make sure that all guidelines are followed. • Pay strict attention to deadlines • Preproposals • Proposals

13. Grant Submission • Make a specific list of requirements. • Give this responsibility to someone who is not a part of the writing team. • Have them prepare the packets. • Give the proposal to them with ample time to meet the deadline. • Make sure that you can FedEx if you have to. • Check it again, again and again.

14. It’s not over yet…. • Stay in contact with SP. • Know when the granting agency was going to announce the award winners. • Check-in periodically with SP to make sure that the NOA has arrived. • Ask to have a copy of EVERYTHING!!

15. …and still not over! • Ask for account numbers once they have been set up. • Don’t rely on IFAS extension to remember every component of your grant. • Familiarize yourself with UF process for grant expenditure. • Ask for a P-card.

16. Mo’ Money (NOA) • Yahoo! • You won the grant award. • Now what?

17. Project Implementation • Make sure that your budget is in the right account categories. • Find out how to expend your funding. • Go through the proper process for county operations office. • Each category may have a different person to submit paperwork to.

18. OCO OE Travel local In-state Out-of-state Staff OPS Agent Program Assistant Consultant For Example

19. Don’t Forget Reporting • Specific to the granting agency. • Specific to UF/IFAS. • Copy in everyone. • Specific to the county. • Less is safer.

20. Middle-of-the-grant Advice • Keep up with the required reporting. • Include section on “Problems & Solutions. • Have scheduled meetings. • Look at the scope of services periodically. • Try to keep on track. • Ask for a “no-cost extension”

21. Completion of Project • Final Report: usually just an overview. • Final statistics. • Successes. • How it solved the original problem. • Focus on the future. • Add pictures and graphs. Not just verbiage.

22. Completion of Project • Final accounting. • Spend all monies within 6 months of end of project date. • Make sure that UF is keeping up with F&A. • Keep track of your own budget expenses throughout the life of the grant award.

23. Done Yet? • Evaluate the grant, the agency and your role in the process. • Learn from your mistakes. • Try it again.

24. Questionsand And maybe some answers.