Successful projects are built on the pillars of strong leadership, communication, organization, coordination, and partnership. This three-part series provides a practical, large-scale perspective on the three major phases of preparing for, pursuing, and implementing grants.
View the recording of each training in the expandable sections below. In the orange panel, find links to PDFs of the written presentations and answers to the questions posed by attendees during each training.
Grant Basics Part 1: Before the Grant (April 9, 2024)
Learn about the forethought and planning that can make all the difference before applying for a grant.
Setting priorities and selecting the right projects are cornerstones for winning grants. Join VLCT’s Federal Funding Assistance staff to learn how to turn ideas into projects, including:
gathering ideas, setting priorities, and selecting project concepts;
establishing roles and responsibilities that set your project up for success;
creating a project team to harmonize communication and avoid surprises;
finding help when you have a capacity gap; and
understanding project and grant readiness.
Grant Basics Part 2: Developing and Funding the Project (May 28, 2024)
Learn about project development and ways to fund your project.
Transforming an idea into a project plan is essential for winning grants: funders and voters want projects that are realistic, viable, and sustainable. Project development helps ensure you know what resources are needed to build, operate, maintain, and eventually replace a grant-funded project. It identifies red flags, builds a realistic timeline and budget, and aligns expectations among stakeholders.
VLCT’s Federal Funding Assistance staff explains project development and ways to fund your project. Topics include:
The project lifecycle and the products that help move you toward grant success
The important role of capital stacks in the project’s funding package
What to know about grants and how they work, and what funders want to see in an application.
Grant Basics Part 3: Grant Management (September 24, 2024)
Hear about the requirements that are typically involved with using a grant.
One of the most critical and often overlooked aspects of pursuing a grant is a municipality’s capacity to manage it, if awarded. Many experienced people call this “the strings.”
Before applying for a grant, and most definitely before signing a grant agreement, consider these questions: Does your municipality have the time, skills, and other resources to effectively meet all the grant agreement’s terms and conditions? Can you meet the reporting and audit obligations as well as the timelines for the project and deliverables? Has your municipality adopted the policies that are required to ensure compliance? Do you have the necessary systems in place for internal controls, financial management, and cost and expenditure monitoring and allocation? If you have a solid grant management process in place, you can easily answer YES to all these questions.
Join VLCT’s Federal Funding Assistance staff to learn about the common elements of a grant award and the basics for its effective management, including topics such as
The grant agreement
Implementation and management
Monitoring and reporting
Evaluation
Closeout
Presenters
Katie Buckley, Federal Funding Assistance Program Director, VLCT
Bonnie Waninger, Federal Funding Assistance Program Specialist, VLCT