Welcome to Collaborative Consulting Group’s blog! When the word nonprofit is mentioned we immediately think of “Grants”. According to Business Directory.com ”a grant is a bounty, contribution, gift or subsidy bestowed by a government or other organization (called the grantor) for specified purposes to an eligible recipient (called the grantee). Grants are usually conditional upon certain qualifications as to the use, maintenance of specified standards, or a proportional contribution by the grantee or other grantor(s).” In other words if an individual or organization has a sum of money that they wish to give away for whatever purpose then, this may be called a grant. The quest for grants is simply a process of finding the individual or entity with a passion similar to the purpose of your organization to apply for those funds. Although, applications vary in length and complexity, the solicitation process if in fact simple. What complicate the system are the hundreds of myths that surround grants. In this blog we will dissect the complex system of grants by exposing its myths.
MYTH #1: THERE ARE GRANTS AVAILABLE FOR INDIVIDUALS
TRUTH: VERY FEW
There is no cut and dry truth for this myth. To find the answer we must look at the process as a whole. As stated in the above paragraph grants are ways for individuals or entities to give away funds for a particular cause. So let’s take a look at this on a personal level by thinking about the following scenario.
Scenario: During your childhood your family struggled financially and lost its home due to foreclosure. Now as an adult who has done very well for him/herself you have thousands of dollars set aside to assist individuals in need. Still working and spending time with your family you decide to start a foundation that educates homeowners and award grants to those close to foreclosure.
With the above scenario in mind which of the following options seem reasonable in granting funds to individuals.
Option 1: As the founder you elect to become the Executive Director of your organization full-time while keeping your full-time business (i.e.… entrepreneur, sports hero, six figure executive) to support your family. You and your board take thousands applications nationwide for individuals who are in danger of foreclosure and decide which individuals will receive the money.
Option 2: As the founder you find that the need is so great that you issue the funds to a nonprofit organization capable of handling such requests so that you may have time to dedicate to your business and families needs.
Although, philanthropist at heart would choose option number one, most grantors elect option number two. Option number two is less time consuming which allows the grantor to focus on continuing to put funds into the foundation by focusing on his/her business. This option also decreases the risk of the funds being misused in that most nonprofit organizations have safeguards in place to protect the funds and the constituents. An example of this is clear on one of the largest grant funding websites grants.gov which states, “Grants.gov does not provide personal financial assistance. To learn where you may find personal help, check Government Benefits, Student Loans and Small Business Start-up Loans.” This clearly indicates that the best way for individuals to go about receiving financial assistance for hardships is through local nonprofits, government agencies and by researching scholarship opportunities at the local library.
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