How To Receive Grants For Your School Even When You Do Not Know How

Hey School Leaders, 

I know you are swamped with work and holiday planning, but I’ve got an idea I want to share with you today: 

Possibility thinking increases your possibilities, draws opportunities and people to you, and allows you to dream big dreams. 

Possibility thinking is changing the question from Can I? to How Can I?

Some time ago, a charter school was in a challenging financial crunch. During the board meeting, the principal announced that the school needed to find money to invest in a game-changing curriculum and program that would improve their academic programs and really help their teachers save time and energy. 

The principal explained to the board that the teachers were creating most of the lessons and materials and spending lots of time and energy searching for content rather than focusing their time on connecting with students, analyzing data, and mastering their craft.

The budget was too tight to buy ALL of the resources.

A board member asked, “Can’t we write a grant or just fundraise for the money?” No one on the board had those skills, and the principal shared that he’d never written a grant before. They were unsure where to look or where to even start. 

As a result, the board found some money in their budget to buy parts of the curriculum and a few of the consumable workbooks, figuring that the teachers could make copies. They put a bandaid on the real problem, and, because the program was underfunded, there was a lack of faith in the program, dooming it from the outset. 

Just because your school doesn’t have a grant writer or grant expertise doesn’t mean that your school is incapable of receiving grants. 

One quick solution is to identify a grant writing expert. For a low cost, a grant writer can assist you in identifying the grants that best meet your needs and current reality. 

Case in point, Leaders Building Leader’s grant writing expert, Katy Ridnouer, just served three schools in accelerating their school’s success in improved school safety!

These three schools asked, “How Can We?” and utilized possibility thinking to identify a need, and partnered with the right people to provide for their need. For an investment of less than $2,000, each school received full funding of the NC DPI School Safety Grant to ensure the safety of their students, their staff, and their families. A hearty Congratulations to these three schools:

Apprentice Academy High School was awarded a total of $38,108 for a School Resource Officer, School Safety Equipment, and School Safety Training. 

Carolina Charter Academy was awarded a total of $39,093 for a School Resource Officer, School Safety Equipment, and School Safety Training. 

INVEST COLLEGIATE: Transform was awarded a total of $98,783 for a School Resource Officer, School Safety Equipment, Students in Crisis Services, and School Safety Training. 

With this money, each school will become a safer place so the focus can remain on educating children.

Here’s a breakdown of the award:

• 3 School Resource Officers.
• Video cameras, a defibrillator, and a metal detector. 
• Professional development in CALM training (Counseling on Access to Lethal Means) to equip everyone with the skills to keep weapons off campus. 
• Psychological care for children coping with the effects of abuse. 

Leaders Building Leaders is honored to be entrusted with this important work. We exist to be the difference maker in schools so that school leaders and their teams can focus on the essential work of ensuring student success in all areas. 

So remember, possibility thinking increases your possibilities, draws opportunities and people to you, and allows you to dream big dreams. 

What’s possible at your school? 

If you are open to just talk about the question, How can I?, simply email [email protected] to begin achieving that dream. 

Merry Christmas!