Library Grants 101

• Would you like to know how to plan and write grant proposals that have a competitive edge?
• Are you new to library grant work or do you want to update your grant writing abilities?
• Would you like personalized advice and best practices for grant writing from an expert?

In this popular course, you can discover the confidence, knowledge, and skills you need to win library grants with instructor Stephanie Gerding, grants expert and an author of the best seller, Winning Grants: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians from ALA Editions. This course will cover grant work from start to finish, including determining your community needs, designing a well planned grant project, finding the best funding sources and grant opportunities, and writing a winning grant proposal. Learn an easy-to-follow grant process cycle and receive practical advice, valuable worksheets, and time-saving strategies. When you complete the course, you'll be excited, motivated, and ready with the knowledge you need to win library grants!

Course Description: This four-week online course will provide resources, tips and techniques that can be used immediately. Through assignments, discussion forums, and an online meeting, you will apply the concepts learned to discover grant opportunities and create winning grant proposals. You will have the opportunity to submit a short sample grant proposal and get personalized feedback from an expert grant reviewer.

Course Outline: When you log in to the Infopeople online learning site, you will see weekly modules with these topics:

• Week 1: Planning, Preparing, and Prioritizing for Winning Library Grants
  • Overview of the grant process cycle
  • Planning and preparing for the library grant process
  • Determining community needs, formally and informally
  • The importance of partnerships and collaboration
• Week 2: Designing Winning Grant Projects
  • The responsibilities of a grant team and how-to identify possible members
  • Developing a grant project plan
  • Realistic and achievable grant project timelines
  • Identifying and measuring outcomes for a grant project
• Week 3: Researching Funders and Finding Grant Opportunities
  • The best grant funding sources and resources
  • Determining whether or not grant opportunities are suited to your library
  • Defining what grant reviewers and funders are looking for in a successful proposal
• Week 4: Creating the Winning Proposal and Grant Implementation
  • Planning and writing grant proposals
  • Overview of the grant review process
  • Implementing a grant project

Pre-course Assignment: Before the course begins, learners should examine their library's strategic plan, technology plan, current goals, and relevant needs assessments. Learners will benefit most from the course if they identify a specific grant project idea.

Time Required: To complete this course, you can expect to spend 2½ hours per week, for a total of ten course hours. Each week's module contains readings and various options for assignments, discussions, or online meetings. You can choose the options most relevant to your work and interests. Although you can work on each module at your own pace, at any hour of the day or night, it is recommended that you complete each week's work within that week to stay in sync with other learners.

Who Should Take This Course: Library staff and administrators, Friends, board members, and anyone involved with library grant work.

Online Learning Details and System Requirements may be found at: infopeople.org/training/online_learning_details.

Learner Requirements: None

After the official end date for the course, the instructor will be available for limited consultation and support for two more weeks, and the course material will stay up for an additional two weeks after that. These extra weeks give those who have fallen behind time to work independently to complete the course.

Keywords: Grant writing