Nonprofit Grant Services

AURORA’S ANCHORS OF SUCCESS:

Grant Documents

Funding Research: Let Aurora Grants & Consulting research potential funders for your nonprofit. This service is available on a specific or ongoing contractual basis.

Writing: Our experienced writers will compose all, or part, of your organization’s grant proposal. Review meetings will be included in the grant writing timetable.

Editing & Assembly: Hire Aurora Grants experts to edit your proposal before you submit it. Our independent perspective will pinpoint grammatical and spelling errors, as well as inconsistencies or assumptions that might be stumbling blocks for reviewers. Whether online submissions or hard copy, we will ensure that all required support documentation is included and referenced appropriately.

Grant Strategy

In our consulting capacity, Aurora Grants first establishes whether potential clients are “grant ready” by walking them through an organizational evaluation process. Once engaged, we work closely with directors and development staff to determine the best use of their resources, identifying grant opportunities and suggesting supplemental strategies where warranted.

To further support our clients' overall fundraising success, we offer facilitated board retreats and workshops designed to build fund development plans that support their mission, vision, and strategic goals.

Grant Opportunities

To facilitate researching for grant opportunities, Aurora Grants subscribes to a number of robust foundation databases, as well as e-newsletters that publish new RFPs and grant applications as they become available. Our staff is constantly checking grant openings and deadlines against our current client base, looking for the right fit.

Our own, in-house database is also a powerful resource. Developed over many years, it is always the first place we look for grant options whenever a client adds a new program or service. Based on this ongoing research, Aurora Grants prepares detailed grants calendars tailored to each client's funding requirements, fiscal year, and budget.

Development Plans

Since 2015, Aurora Grants President Linda Beeman has been working with Jennifer Pelton, CFRE to create a methodology to help nonprofits design dynamic fund development plans. Based on a series of open-ended questions that can apply to agencies at all stages, the process is both probing and iterative.

Published in the Winter 2016 Management Information Exchange Journal, their 21-question, three-phase approach was presented to standing-room-only audiences at both the 2017 and 2018 AFP International Conferences, and has been expanded to a full-day workshop format for the 2019 Conference. Half- and full-day development plan board retreats are available by request. Linda and Jennifer are certified AFP Master Trainers.

Workshops

Aurora Grants & Consulting conducts one-hour and half-day workshops.

Topics include: Writing (everything from basic grammar and punctuation, to writing donor thank you letters and emails); Nonprofit Marketing; and Messaging Consistency. These workshops can be tailored to fit your nonprofit’s specific needs.

Marketing

Materials Review: You are telling your nonprofit’s story every day through your logo, brochure, mailings, and website. How often do you update them?

When submitting a grant proposal, it is crucial that the information you include is consistent with all organizational information that is accessible to the funder. Aurora Grants & Consulting will audit your current marketing materials, in conjunction with writing a grant proposal, and submit a report on any updating or improvements that need to be made in keeping with the proposal and your mission.

Confidentiality

All documents regarding your organization will be treated confidentially by Aurora Grants & Consulting personnel, both during and after the contracted period.