The Business of Nonprofits

This is a lengthy article, but well worth the time to read.   Please check it out over at the Philanthropy News Digest.

The Nonprofit Starvation Cycle

by Don Howard, Ann Goggins Gregory A vicious cycle is leaving nonprofits so hungry for decent infrastructure that they can barely function as organizations — let alone serve their beneficiaries. The cycle starts with funders’ unrealistic expectations about how much running a nonprofit costs, and results in nonprofits misrepresenting their costs while skimping on vital systems — acts that feed funders’ skewed beliefs. To break the nonprofit starvation cycle, funders must take the lead.

What is the Common Grant Application?

The name Common Grant Application is misleading.  It is not a simple application for grant seekers to fill in.  Rather, it is a general outline for grant seekers to use when crafting their proposals.

The Foundation Center describes how to use the Common Grant Application:

“The common grant application format has been adopted by groups of grantmakers to allow grant applicants to produce a single proposal for a specific community of funders, thereby saving time. Before applying to any funder that accepts a common grant application form, be sure to check that your project matches the funder’s stated interests, and ascertain whether the funder would prefer a letter of inquiry in advance of receiving a proposal. Also be sure to check whether the funder has a deadline for proposals, as well as whether it requires multiple copies of your proposal.”

Here is the Common Grant Application for Grantmakers of Western PA.   On page 9, there is a list of the grantmakers who accept this format.