Grants in Human Services
The purpose of grants is to fund projects and programs that meet the specific qualifications required by donors. Some come from government agencies, private companies, trusts and wills of private individuals, and others come from public funding sources. This funding source is generally given for a specific period of time for start-up costs of projects and programs; not as long-term revenue. Some grants are renewable, but most are only a one-time source of funding. Regardless of which stage a program is in (planning, development, expansion, or general operations), grant funds will be needed to make their mission a reality.
While grant are not only available to new organizations, they usually are considered more often than organizations that have been up and running for many year. Usually new organizations applying for grants will be on stipulations by a contract and that is usually for a certain length of time, while it can be continued after that contract end, they must show a need for the grant( Grants also allow for the expansion of existing programs to include new services.
In most cases to be considered for grant funding, donors want to see an organizations vision, mission, purpose, direction, goals, objectives, activities, and tasks are terms that proposal writers and program planners use. Most often it is a certain demographic/population which shows a need. The plan should show specifically how the problem will be addressed, what amount of funding is needed to make budget, staffing concerns and requirements ((Yuen/Terao, 2003).
Grants are very important when it comes to programs and organizations. While some smaller agencies may need more funding through this method than others, all need some form of support. An agency which receives most of its funding through block grants from the federal government will rely less on grants from charities and private organizations. Whereas an organization that receives little or no funding...