How to Read a Federal NOFO/RFP/FOA and Find What You Need

Earlier this month I read my very first Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) delivered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Mind you, I’ve been reading and responding to federal grant guidance since 2001, and I’ve decided to put IMLS in charge of all NOFOs from here on out.

Seriously, librarians rock for about a thousand reasons. I’m especially fond of how well organized; detailed, but not overly so; and easy to understand the document was. And bonus? It wasn’t a fluke, because I read another one of theirs and it was the same.

Chef’s kiss. Five stars. No notes.

Whether the funder calls it a NOFO, Request for Proposals (RFP), Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), RFA (Request for Applications), or some other fun acronym, the point of funder guidance is to fully explain the purpose of the grant funding and share what information is required for organizations to develop a competitive proposal. But we all know, not all NOFOs are created equally.

Let’s talk about what you are looking for and how to capture all you need to know.

ELIGIBILITY

Is your organization even eligible to apply? Sometimes it’s as simple as looking at the listing of eligibly types of entities. Sometimes it’s a bit more complicated, because eligibility might also include requirements of location, individuals served, and more.

Expert Opinion: Eligibility is just a starting point. Eligibility alone does not make this a good fit for your organization. If you aren’t competitive, then it’s probably not worth the time and effort. Keep reading to determine what it means to be competitive. 

DEADLINE(S)

Is the deadline feasible given the time needed to prepare your proposal? Is it feasible given the status of the program for which you are seeking funding? Is it feasible given any internal approvals required within your organization?

There is no magical number of days required to write a grant, because so many factors play into your timeline: the complexity of the grant application itself, the availability of subject matter experts and other members of your grants team, and any other requirements set forth by the funder. For instance, is there a required workshop, pre-application, or other step that you have already missed?

Expert Opinion: Start tracking the hours it takes you and your team to complete a grant proposal, from start to finish, so you have a better idea of the actual number of days, hours, and manpower it takes to get them finished. You may find that certain funders require less time and effort than others. Knowing helps you determine if deadlines are feasible based on your current workload.

PURPOSE AND AREA OF FOCUS

Is there a close match between your organization’s mission and experience and the purpose of the grant? If the funder lists specific activities that must take place, do you have the ability to carry out said activities.

Expert Opinion: If your organization and planned program are not in lock step with the purpose of the grant, then you are wasting everyone’s time developing and submitting a proposal.

FUNDING PRIORITIES

Often, funders will list funding priorities. If your organization meets the general purpose, but none of the funding priorities, your application will be less competitive. Funding priorities are sometimes buried later in the guidance, so you have to read the entire document.

Expert Opinion: It’s especially important to match funding priorities when the funder is only awarding a small number of grant awards. Sometimes they only award one agency – and you’ll never be the one if you don’t check all the priority boxes.

GRANT AWARD AMOUNT & COST SHARE REQUIREMENTS

How much money is available per each award? If you have a $1,000,000 project to fund, but the maximum award available is $100,000, this might not be the best fit for your project. Sure, sometimes you can phase projects and do it piece by piece – but is this a project you want to write 10 grants to hopefully meet your funding requirement?

In the same vein, what is the cost share (formerly known as matching) requirement for this grant. If they require a 50% match of the total project cost and you have a $2,000,000 project, do you have $1,000,000 in cash (or in-kind resources if allowed by the funder) to meet your cost share?

Expert Opinion: Cost share requirements are often what prohibit organizations from seeking federal grant funding. Most funders require your cost share to be available at the time of the application, and that takes a lot of planning and forethought.

COLLABORATION OR PARTNERSHIPS

Does the funder require any collaborative efforts or specific partnerships? If so, does your agency have existing relationships in place? Relationships strong enough to develop a federal proposal together don’t often happen overnight.

Expert Opinion: You never know who would make a good partner on a grant proposal. That’s why it’s important to build relationships with a variety of organizations well before there is talk of working together on a federal grant. Start talking to area nonprofits, local governments, public and private K-12 schools, universities, faith-based communities, civic organizations, and neighborhood coalitions now.

REQUIRED ATTACHMENTS

Most federal grant proposals require a handful of attachments. They range from organizational charts and staff resumes to logic models, maps, and letters of support. Often, these attachments are not part of the scoring process when your grant proposal is reviewed, but if just one document is missing your proposal can be thrown out.

The best NOFOs include a checklist with all required attachments, making it easy for you to find what is needed to complete an application. Other applications mention each attachment some place different throughout the NOFO. If that’s the case, take good notes so you don’t miss an important element of your proposal.

Expert Opinion: Attachments can be an afterthought when your focus is on getting the grant written. Make these a priority, because they often take time and require information and/or assistance from others.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

It’s important to understand what you’re getting into when the grant is awarded. Do you have the staff time, expertise, or funding for a qualified contractor to support the grant management requirements of the grant, including program outcomes and budgeted expenditures?

Expert Opinion: Most NOFOs do not detail all the requirements, so expect there to be more work in post-award than outlined in the document.

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS

Are there page limits, mandatory formatting, or other requirements related to the documents you will submit as part of your grant proposal? Some funders require certain naming protocols for attachments. They might also have a certain order for documents to be included in your proposal – whether you are emailing the final product or uploading it into an online platform.

I’ve heard horror stories of organizations being disqualified from funding for having one attachment out of place or their margins half an inch smaller than the specifications outlined in the NOFO. Pay attention to these details.

Expert Opinion: This may seem like a little thing, but it can make or break your application’s competitiveness, so pay attention.

BUDGET

Does the funder provide a budget template, or do you need to make your own? Do they give mandatory categories? Do they ask for an accompanying budget narrative/justification?

Are there any items the funder deems unallowable? Can you claim an in-direct cost rate? If so, do you need any backup documentation for it?

It’s important to understand what the funder wants to see in your budget documents.

Expert Opinion: Make sure that what you have listed in the budget matches everything else you’ve mentioned in your narrative. For instance, if your program description says you are hiring three new nurses for the cancer treatment program detailed in the grant, those three nursing positions should be found in your budget and budget narrative. 

When you have a thoughtfully prepared NOFO, it makes it easy to find all these details and prepare a competitive proposal. It’s a lot harder when the NOFO is not as well organized. Then it’s on you to know what you’re looking for and get every one of your questions answered.

I wish they were all like IMLS, but most often they are not. That means it’s up to you to pull at every thread to get to the important bits. Happy reading and best wishes as you go!