Bibliometric benchmarking can be an aid to researchers pondering whether to apply for competitive grants. In this paper, the highly prestigious grants offered by the European Research Council to young scientists of any nationality were scrutinized. The analysis of the 2014-2015 data indicates that over 75% of life science grantees in the starting…

This article describes the Social Entrepreneurship for Poverty Alleviation (SEPA) grant-writing program at Austin College. The SEPA program provides a service-learning experience in which students spend a summer writing grants with local nonprofit agencies. In the hope that others might choose to emulate our efforts, what follows is a detailed…

A challenge gift helps fundraisers reach goals by stimulating multiple aspects of a fundraising program. First, the message of a challenge grabs the attention of prospects and generally generates excitement beyond the case for support. It also commands the attention of the prospect managers in an organization, particularly when the challenge…

The increased focus on private fundraising poses challenges for community colleges (Jackson & Glass, 2000). A challenge is a lack of fundraising experience within community colleges and their foundations. There now exists a donor-focused fundraising model for community colleges to use to enhance their fundraising initiatives and increase the…

Billionaire philanthropists compare notes in private with their peers. Whether experienced philanthropists or first-time donors, they all want their gifts to make a difference, and they are hungry for knowledge about how to be effective donors. They want to be educated about philanthropy. Educational institutions are experts at making the case for…

Alumni participation rates of 40 percent and more are not uncommon at private baccalaureate institutions in the United States. At most publics, there is real cause for cheering when the rate peaks over 10 percent. Part of the problem is simply the math. With larger pools of alumni, public institutions face much higher costs, for instance, to send…

Very few teachers or administrators have had any formal training in grant writing. To that end, the GrantSuccess system, an efficient, four- stage, team-based approach to writing a successful grant application, was developed. In this article, the author presents four tips from the first stage.

Planned giving, which should not be considered just the domain of the super-wealthy, can be a solution for donors who are looking for secure income during their lifetimes--as well as tax benefits for themselves and their heirs. Even in difficult times, donors are most likely to consider a planned gift. Why? Quite simply, planned gifts are…

When it comes to raising money for college and university athletic programs, every professional knows how the game is played. Tickets drive the bus. In exchange for gifts, donors typically pay seat-licensing fees. This kind of "quid pro quo" giving--where generous contributions put one in position to buy good tickets--is a very common model," says…

There are thousands of caring and financially capable individuals across the United States who want to experience the joy and elation of donating to a worthy cause. Many of those individuals want to invest in causes that change people's lives, not just give their money away. There are few causes more worthy and life-altering than giving to the…

College and university fund raisers are offered three recommendations for targeting the best donors: (1) make effective use of indexes and directories, electronic or manual, to match foundation and college interests; (2) narrow the pool to true prospects; and (3) make preproposal contact geared to the foundation's style or organization. (MSE)

Guidelines are offered for making the most of either a foundation visit to a college campus in search of funding or a fund-raising visit to a foundation. Detailed planning, presenting the strengths of the college, and conducting an effective meeting are discussed. (MSE)

Suggestions are offered to teachers for obtaining minigrants from community resources other than the school in order to acquire assistive technology devices for students with disabilities. The approach involves the steps of obtaining information about potential donors, making contacts, and specifying benefits to the community and to the donor…

Reviews the activities and research projects in education supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The Foundation's current emphases are on the humanities, campus diversity, granting fellowships, and working with premier institutions. Recent publications by Mellon staff have increased the visibility of the Foundation's activities. (DB)

Many projects grow out of passion and minimal outside funding. One's own personal enthusiasm, together with non-monetary encouragement of others, can fuel a project for a while. On-going development of a project and sustainability however, often depends upon partnering with people and funding resources. In this article, the author shares ideas on…