September 8 GPF News
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News from the Grant Professionals Foundations
4 Ways for Grant Pros to Pay It Forward in 2015
Micki Vandeloo, GPC Lakeview Consulting, Inc.
Micki@lakeviewconsulting.net
September, 2015
It has been said, “It is better to give than to receive.” As grant professionals, we could make the case that we give back every day by helping organizations obtain financial support for their worthwhile efforts. However, I believe we are on this earth to give fully of ourselves, so I have been pondering other ways I can give back. I decided to focus my thoughts on giving back to the grants profession. I have received such vast knowledge and professional assistance from other grant professionals, as I know you have. Now, it’s time to “pay it forward”.
I know not all of us have vast resources to commit financially, so I want you to think about four ways that are simple and inexpensive ways to support our profession.
Give to the Grant Professionals Foundation
The Grant Professionals Foundation (GPF) strengthens nonprofits and advances the grant profession by providing scholarships for the Grant Professionals Association’s (GPA’s) Annual Conference, GPA membership, and Grant Professionals Certification (GPC) exams. I am a proud member of the Foundation Board of Directors and have been amazed at the generosity of grant professionals from around the country. The Foundation wants to increase its financial support for grant pros – but to do so, we have to secure more financial support from compassionate people like you.
Now is a great time to give through the Giving Well, the GPF’s new monthly giving club. Simply go to the GPF website and enter the monthly amount you wish to contribute. You can donate at whatever level is comfortable for you, and the money is deducted automatically from your bank or credit card account. This is an excellent way to show your love for the profession!
Create a Scholarship in Someone’s Name
Is there a grant pro who has made a difference in your career or life but who has sadly passed on? There is no better way to honor the person’s memory than by creating a membership, GPC, or conference scholarship in his or her name. Examples of current honorary awards are the Chuck Howard Legacy Scholarship and Endowment Fund, the Susan Kemp GPA Conference Scholarship, and the Pam Van Pelt Memorial Scholarship.
To establish a scholarship in someone’s name, contact Kimberly Hays de Muga, GPF Board Chair, and provide details about the award you would like to create, including any
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application requireements. Thee GPF welcoomes the oppportunity to memorialize and hoonor the peopple who havve made a ddifference inn the lives oof grant proofessionals.
Donatee to the Sillent Auctiion
The GPAA National CConferencee is coming up soon! Itt will be helld from Novvember 11 through the 14 in SSt. Louis, Missouri! I amm excited, aas a local reesident andd member oof the St. Louiss Chapter, tto welcomee grant professionals frrom aroundd the world to one of thhe fun and tradition-ppacked citiees there is!
Every yeear, at the NNational Coonference, the Grant Prrofessionalls Foundati on organizees a Silent Auuction to beenefit the FFoundation’’s scholarshhip fund. It has gottenn bigger andd better evvery year, aand this yeaar will be noo exception. From tripps to jewelryy to handmade gifts, thiis year’s aucction promiises to offerr items thatt will help yyou Eat! Plaay! Live!
We are llooking for donations ffor the silennt auction. If you or soomeone youu know has a talent foor making aarts or craftss, a vacatio n property,, a special ttalent or skiills to sharee, or other ideeas for Silennt Auction items valueed at over $$100, pleasee visit our SSilent Auctiion donationn page to suubmit youritem description.
Volunteer at the GPA Natiional Conference
The National Confeerence would not succeed withouut hundredss of volunteeers. You caan work at the Silent AAuction, be a session hhost, or worrk at the Weelcome tablle or registrattion desk. ((Click on thhose links too sign up foor your voluunteer slot nnow!) Donaating your timme doesn’t ccost anythinng and is a ggreat way too network aand learn mmore about the conferennce and thee Grant Proffessionals AAssociationn.
I hope yyvantage of oone of thesee ways to giive back to others! Graant writing
ou take adv is a fulfillingg professionn full of gennerous, kindd, big-heartted people wwho deservve your timee and inveestment. WWe’re “makinng the worldd a better pplace, one ggrant at a timme”.
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GPC Scholarships Available in 2015
Thinking about sitting for the Grant Professional Certified™ (GPC) Exam? You could not have chosen a better time. Thanks to donations from individuals, the Grant Professionals Certification Institute (GPCI), and the Grant Professionals Foundation, scholarship funding is available for individuals interested in taking the new electronic exam.
Any individual interested in the scholarship is welcome to apply starting Tuesday, September 1, 2015. The deadline to apply is Thursday, October 1, 2015, 5:00pm, EST. Scholarship recipients will be announced at the GPA National Conference in November.
All individuals awarded a 2015 GPC Scholarship must submit their eligibility packet to GPCI by March 1, 2016, and if approved to sit for the exam, take it by September 30, 2016. The exact number of scholarships has not been announced.
The cost for sitting for the GPC Exam is $539 for Grant Professional Association members and $739 for non-members. If awarded a scholarship, it will be in the form of a credit directly to GPCI for all or a portion of the GPC exam cost. Each individual is responsible for covering any additional expenses, including transportation costs to the exam site. Scholarship applicants are responsible for registering for the exam in addition to filling out the scholarship application.
To learn more about this process, visit the Grant Professionals Certification Institute website at www.grantcredential.org. The scholarship application will be available on the Grant Professionals Foundation website September 1st.
Impact Survey Closes August 15, 2015
Grant Professionals Foundation needs your input… Click Here! Take our Questionnaire!
The Grant Professionals Impact Survey is intended to help us measure the vital impact grant professionals make each year. The survey will collect 2014 fiscal year data to compare against our previous surveys. The survey will close August 15th!
We understand how important your time is – by completing the survey you can choose to enter our drawing for a $100 Visa gift card!
■ Take our Survey! ■ Support the Grant Profession! ■ Tell us Your Opinion! ■ Share your Impact!
Follow the link here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2015CommunityImpact
2015 Conference Scholarship Recipients
The Grant Professionals Foundation and its partner Chapters and donors are delighted to announce the 2015 Conference Scholarship Recipients. Please join us in celebrating their success!
Susan Kemp Memorial
Coleen Barry – Dallas, TX
Marissa Cassellius – Tucson, AZ
Chuck Howard Memorial
Rhonda McDonald – Chugiak, AK
Pam Van Pelt Memorial (Nevada Chapter)
Judy Riffle – Rio Rico, AZ
Grant Professionals Foundation
Amanda Ellinger – Roanoke, VA
Elaine Finn – Audubon, NJ
Amy Grosso – Round Rock, TX
Arkansas Chapter
Danell Hetrick – Batesville, AR
Jerry Dillehay (Founding Chapter)
Kristyn Connor – Tucson, AZ
Peach State (Georgia Chapter)
DeaRonda Harrison – McDonough, GA
South Florida Chapter
Jayson Babel – Fort Lauderdale, FL
Christine Heft – Cooper City, FL
St. Louis Chapter
Fielding Jezreel – St. Louis, MO
Leah Joyce – Collinsville, IL
Ashlee Lambert – Belleville, IL
The Grant Professionals Foundation is humbled by the continued, compassionate support of its major donors, like Dr. Beverly Browning who supports the Susan Kemp Memorial Scholarship, and the scores of individual donors who make the GPF’s work possible. Thank you!
International Grant Professionals Week ends March 20th with Grant Professionals Day!
Danny Blitch, MPA, GPC
Grants Manager, City of Roswell, Georgia
February, 2015
Grant funding is important to most nonprofit organizations and government agencies, as it makes achieving missions easier. It is one of the ways organizations pay for the services they provide. Grants, combined with fundraising, program income and direct client
service fees, generate the revenues organizations need to sustain themselves. In short, grants help nonprofits serve more people everywhere.
Many grant professionals do not do their work for the paycheck, the recognition or for accolades from our employers. Rather, almost universally, they are grant professionals because they like to help others. They find comfort in being able to take a mountain of information and condense/develop it into a successful grant proposal.
The Grant Professionals Association has partnered with the Grant Professionals Foundation and the Grant Professionals Certification Institute to recognize grant professionals for their work. Whether full-time or part-time, grant professionals are the heavy lifters who work with grants in one form or another: they are grant seekers, grant developers, grant makers, and grant managers. They may also be executive directors, professors, city clerks, researchers, county managers, program staff or volunteers. They may wear one hat—or twenty. Regardless, grant professionals are important, and their contributions are vital.
We’re planning activities for each day starting March 16 through March 20. Each activity is designed to recognize the grant profession and the importance of our credential, creating world-wide awareness of the life-changing work we do every day. Want to know how you can be involved? Whether you’re a grant professional, member of a GPA chapter, or part of a nonprofit organization, government agency, or business, you can join us by taking a moment to recognize the grant professional(s) you know. You don’t have to shout from the roof tops or buy us lunch… although both would be okay. But, taking the time to send a quick note, a heartfelt thank you or give a friendly pat on the back will mean the world to us.
So on March 20, 2015, I invite you to pause and recognize the specialized work of grant professionals everywhere who are so deadline driven they often schedule their vacations and the births of their children around the “federal silly season.”
International Grant Professionals Week 2015 ends March 20th with Grant Professionals Day. Don’t miss the opportunity to wish your favorite grant professional a “Happy… Grant Professionals Day!”
Every Chapter Challenge Tool Box
ECC Online Tool Box
The Tool Box items are provided as a resource to Chapter Presidents, leaders and members to assist with your fundraising efforts.
Questions? Want to learn more, email us: info@grantprofessionalsfoundation.org
Intro:
- Every Chapter Challenge Grant Expectations Blog Article by Danny Blitch
- Press Release
Chapter Tools:
- Every Chapter Challenge Top Ten Reasons to Give.pdf
- Sample Request Letter
- Sample Thank You Letter
How to Give:
- Online via PayPal
- Every Chapter Challenge – Star Gift Form
- GPF Donation Mail-In Form
Take Our Impact Survey! Win $100
Grant Professionals Impact Survey – Your Opinion Matters!
The Grant Professionals Foundation invites you to… Click Here! Take our Questionnaire!
Your feedback is important to us, and the Grant Professionals Impact Survey is intended to help us measure the vital impact grant professionals make each year. The survey will collect 2014 fiscal year data to compare against our previous surveys. Your comments will help us to better understand the grant profession and share the results of our work.
We understand how important your time is – by completing the survey you can choose to enter our drawing for a $100 Visa gift card! Your Opinion Matters. Thank you!
■ Take our Survey! ■ Support the Grant Profession! ■ Tell us Your Opinion! ■ Share your Impact!
GPA Headquarters has Moved!
Grant Professionals Association – Effective immediately!
NEW ADDRESS: 10881 Lowell Avenue, Suite 190, Overland Park, KS. 66210
Every Chapter Challenge: Ready, Set, Challenge, Benefit!
Danny Blitch, MPA, GPC
Grants Manager, City of Roswell, Georgia
June 2015
Each year since 2008, the Grant Professionals Foundation has relied on the philanthropic and competitive spirit of GPA chapters and members to fund programs to advance the grants profession. Funds raised through the Every Chapter Challenge not only provide funds for scholarships, but also help GPA chapters to acknowledge, retain, and recruit their leaders and members.
Last year was the most successful Every Chapter Challenge to date, thanks to members from 25 chapters who raised $7,400. The 2014 chapter participation rate was just shy of 60%. The Star Chapter Award for the most funds raised was presented to the St. Louis Chapter, which raised $1,225— the highest total secured by a chapter in the history of the Challenge. The GPF is very fortunate to have such incredible support.
Ready! The 2015 Every Chapter Challenge is a year-long nationwide fundraising effort encouraging all 43 GPA chapters to support the Foundation and achieve a challenge goal of $250. The competition for Star runs from January 1 until the GPA Conference in St Louis, Missouri (which is November 11-14, 2015). GPF will announce the results of the competition and present the Star Chapter award during the conference!
Set! The proceeds from the Star Chapter competition and the Every Chapter Challenge 2015 campaign make possible the Foundation’s efforts to promote grant education/ professional development, assist more grant professionals to obtain GPC credentials, and grow the GPA membership (by awarding dues scholarships at both the National and Chapter levels).
Challenge! The “Challenge” is participation by 100% of GPA’s local Chapters. Currently, there are 43 active Chapters in about 30 states. Jerry Dillehay, a Founding Chapter Arizona GPA member and longtime supporter of the Foundation, issued the challenge with his initial $250 gift in December of 2007. The gantlet was thrown, the challenge was officially on, and the Every Chapter Challenge was born!
Benefit! The ECC2015 benefits GPA members and the grant profession – ensuring grant professionals attend the national conference for professional development; ensuring GPA Chapter’s retain/acknowledge local leaders, retain quality GPA members, and recruit new GPA members; and, the Foundation educates grant professionals about fundraising methods and development practices.
GPA is the authority on grants and is doing their part by engaging members, strengthening the profession through high-quality strategy papers and the GPA journal, all the while adding new chapters. The Foundation is supporting the advancement of the profession and strengthening nonprofits through education and awareness. The GPCI is further professionalizing the field through credentialing and promoting ethical best practices. The Foundation’s fundraising efforts improve communication, encourage collaboration through regional conference sponsorships and advance the profession’s body of research. We are all working together with the same goal in mind – to advance the grant profession!
Last year, the Foundation partnered with several GPA Chapters to host 11 conference scholarships: the Arkansas Chapter Scholarship sponsored by The Kester Group and the Arkansas Chapter of GPA, the Susan Kemp Memorial Scholarship provided by gifts from friends and admirers of Susan Kemp founded by Dr. Beverly Browning, the Peach State Scholarship provided by the Georgia GPA Chapter, a Jerry Dillehay Scholarship sponsored by the Founding Arizona Chapter, two South Florida Chapter Scholarships sponsored by the South Florida Chapter, one St. Louis Chapter Scholarship sponsored by the St. Louis Area Chapter, and the newest edition to our line up the Pam Van Pelt Memorial sponsored by the Nevada Chapter Scholarship.
New for 2015! GPF is using a single application for all the conference scholarships this year. The scholarship review committee with work with applicants and donors/ chapters to ensure the best fit for each applicant and the scholarships available.
The Foundation is interested in collaborating with every GPA Chapter to host conference scholarships. GPF hosted scholarship application processes in the past and employs a well-tested online scholarship application, scoring rubric and impartial scoring committee to make award decisions. GPA members and non-members can apply today for a scholarship on the Foundation’s website.
Many of our scholarships cover hotel, lodging, meals and travel, and most scholarships pay for the recipients’ registration fees only, but the costs are significant: Early-Bird Registration Rates (ends 07/31/15) are $549 for GPA Members; $783 for Non-members; or $449 for Students. Encourage your colleagues to visit our website: https://grantprofessionalsfoundation.org
Ready, Set, Challenge, Benefit!
The challenge is set, the benefits have been enumerated, and the scholarship application is online. Will you and your chapter friends join me by making a gift in 2015. Will this great and noble profession continue to thrive without you?
On your mark, get set…!
