Grants, Grants, Grants!

fbo-webinarOn Wednesday, October 05, 2016, The Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships along with Dr. Sylvia Lyles of the Office of Academic Improvement (OAI) held a webinar to discuss Applying for US Department of Education Grants. The webinar was in response to requests from the Hampton Ministers’ Conference and other listening sessions. There were over 400 participants eager to learn more about how to apply for Department of Education grants.

Following an introduction and welcome from Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell, Dr. Lyles gave an overview of one of OAI’s functions; managing 30 grant programs with a combined total of over 4 billion dollars. Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) and Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) are encouraged to apply for grants and to begin the process as early as possible. During her overview of the grant application process, Dr. Lyles focused on the 21st Century Community Learning Center’s (CCLC) Grant. Interested organizations should get in touch with their state 21st CCLC contact and learn more on the CCLC website.

Tiffany Ways, HUB Director of The University Church in Toledo, Ohio and Jen Russo, Program Assistant for the Hope After School Program, in Frederick, Maryland provided were voices from the field. They shared some of their experiences as CLCC grantees. Successful grantees must have effective partnerships.

Key components of effective partnerships:

  • Multifaceted partner engagement
  • Consistent communication
  • Building a relationship of trust
  • Working collaboratively through partner administrator and/or staff transitions
  • Overcoming expectation/ execution shortfalls
  • Celebration of successes

This webinar is just our first step on this journey to increase the participation of FBOs and CBOs in the grant process at the U.S. Department of Education.

Stay tuned!