Tips for a successful grant application
The McDonough Foundation has a vested interest in receiving quality applicants. We have put together a list of tips to help you as you complete your funding application. Please note that following these suggestions does not guarantee your request will be funded. They are designed to simply be helpful resources.
Keep the narrative brief as possible.
Answer all of the questions listed on the application website and include all of the materials requested.
Do not request 100% of the funding needed for a project. We want to see your funding resources be diverse and other funders participating.
Before you apply, consider: What impact will your grant have in the long-run? How sustainable is the program?
Whenever possible, avoid duplication of services provided by other entities.
We like to see collaboration between nonprofits and sharing of resources and expenses.
We like to see an active, engaged board and an organization with professional operations with good financial and fiscal controls.
We want to hear from you! Give us a call to discuss your LOI before you submit it.
Additional Resources
Foundation Center maintains the most comprehensive database on U.S. and, increasingly, global grantmakers and their grants — a robust, accessible knowledge bank for the sector.
GrantSpaceSM, a service of the Foundation Center, offers information and resources that are specifically designed to meet the needs of nonprofits worldwide in need of know-how for securing funding and operating effective organizations.
Nonprofits LEAD, a program of Marietta College, exists to build a strong, sustainable nonprofit community in the Mid-Ohio Valley in which every organization is able to effectively and efficiently achieve its mission, providing training, workshops, and collaborative sessions to build capacity.
West Virginia Nonprofit Association
The West Virginia Nonprofit Association seeks to strengthen nonprofit organizations individually and the sector as a whole, catalyzing innovation, fostering a collective voice of its members, and increasing the reputation and influence of the nonprofit sector in West Virginia.