Corporate, Foundation and Research Relations
April 18, 2016
SPONSORED PROJECTS ADMINISTRATION
SLA Faculty Workshop
“Writing a Successful Grant Proposal”
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Kevin Gotham (Assoc. Dean, Sociology
Prof, and former NSF Program Director)
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Kathleen Kozar, Director, Sponsored
Projects Administration (SPA))
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Norey Laug (Associate Director, Sponsored
Projects Administration (SPA))
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Lou Franchina (Senior Development
Officer, Corporate and Foundation
Relations (CFR))
Presentation Topics
1. Introduction to Grant Writing
2. Working with the Sponsored Projects
Administration (SPA)
3. Working with the Office of Corporate
and Foundation Relations (CFR)
4. Proposal Development Strategies for
Investigators
5. Q & A
Why Does Tulane Want You
to Write Grants?
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High visibility for the university
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Overhead or indirect costs help
balance the university budget and pay
for administration
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Contributes to prestige and national
ranking of the university
Why Do You Want to Write Grants
and Pursue External Funding?
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Summer salary, course release, reduced
teaching load, travel, funds for equipment
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Raises your research visibility
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Opens doors to consulting, collaborative
research, new research agendas, etc.
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Increases opportunities for writing, national &
international presentations, and shaping
public policy
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Grants will help you make tenure
What Can Tulane Do
to Help You Write Grants?
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Provide information about funding opportunities
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Provide assistance in filling out forms
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Provide names of key persons at governmental
agencies
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Serve as a liaison to private foundations
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Provide assistance with proposal development,
budgets, IRB, and stewardship reporting
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Keep you informed of deadlines
Some Ground Rules
Please check Tulane’s Investigator Manual
before starting a proposal
 Faculty should not be submitting grant
proposals directly to private foundations
or government agencies
 While there are some exceptions, awards
are granted to the institutions and not to
individuals per se
 Proposals must be submitted to the SLA
Dean’s Office before they go to SPA or CFR
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What Can CFR Do for You?
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Provide assistance with forms and
required attachments
Work with you to develop budgets
Identify internal collaborators
Secure leadership signatures as needed
Identify potential corporate and
foundation funders
Assist in the creation of compelling
proposals
Proposal Development
Strategies

Familiarize yourself with funding
sources and proposal guidelines
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Check:
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eligibility
average size of awards
maximum amount available
previous awards
proposal requirements and format
deadlines
evaluation criteria and process
Components of a Successful
Proposal

A successful proposal is one that is thoughtfully
planned, well prepared, and concisely packaged

Base the proposal on a good idea that fills a gap in
the knowledge of your discipline

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Survey the literature
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Contact Investigators working on topic
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Obtain preliminary data

Prepare a brief concept paper
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Discuss with colleagues/mentors
Use concise, direct, and straightforward language
(no jargon)
Components of a Successful
Proposal
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Stress benefits instead of features

Explain how you will collect the data and
evaluate the findings (data management plan)

Explain the value-added nature of the
research
Why should anyone care about your work?
 Answer the “so what” question
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If appropriate, describe how you will
disseminate the findings
Start Early
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Think ahead (six months, minimum)
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Get critiques from mentors, previous members of
review panels, and program directors

Be aware of the scope: “too ambitious” versus
“too narrow.”
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Make it easy for reviewers: simplify and
streamline (make sure to get the overall idea
across); pay attention to details; keep in mind
that the reviewer may not be an expert in your
specific field

Convince the reviewers that your proposal is the
one to support
Common shortcomings of proposals that
are not funded
Nothing new – it has already been done (absence of
innovative idea or hypothesis)
 Incremental contribution – no evidence of a
breakthrough (not exciting or cutting edge)
 Disconnected – proposed research does not follow from
the idea
 Trust me – lacks sufficient detail about proposed
approach
 Not feasible – proposed methods not likely to work
 Overly ambitious – impractically large project
 Unstated assumptions – proposed research presupposes
the answer
 Unreasonable budget – budget items don’t follow from
the research plan

William T. Grant Foundation

Reducing Inequality
Inequality by race, economic standing, and immigrant origin status is pervasive in
the United States, and is evident across a range of domains, including the
education, child welfare, mental health, and justice systems. We believe that the
research community can play a critical role in reversing these trends. In 2014, the
Foundation launched a ten-year research initiative to reduce inequality by
identifying responses to this fundamental challenge in its many forms.
Within this focus area, we support different types of studies. We welcome
descriptive studies meant to clarify the mechanisms for reducing inequality. We
also seek intervention studies that improve the measurement of inequality in
ways that will enhance the works of researchers, practitioners, or policy makers.

Improving the Use of Research Evidence
From 2009 through 2015, the Foundation supported research to increase
understanding of how research evidence is acquired, understood, and used, as
well as the circumstances that shape its use in decision making. 2016 marks a new
direction for this initiative as we shift our focus from understanding how and
under what conditions research is used to understanding how to create those
conditions. With this new direction, we seek to build theory and empirical
evidence on ways to strengthen the connections between research evidence,
decision making, and youth outcomes. Our focus on improving the use of research
evidence aims to identify, create, and test strategies to ensure that research
reaches the hands of decision makers, answers their most pressing questions, and
is used in ways that benefit youth.
Russell Sage Foundation

Social Inequality (areas of interest)

Economic Well-Being, Equality of Opportunity, and
Intergenerational Mobility
The Political Process and the Resulting Policies
Psychological and/or Cultural Change
Education
Labor Markets
Child Development and Child Outcomes
Neighborhoods and Communities
Families, Family Structure, and Family Formation
Other Forms of Inequality
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SLA Top-Off Policy
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The SLA Dean’s office will supplement a grant
to equal the individual’s salary
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The Dean’s office cannot provide the entire
salary for an unpaid grant if it does not fall
during a sabbatical year
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In terms of grants and durations, SLA’s policy
for a “top-off” is limited to approximately 33
percent of academic year salary
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All requests for top-offs must be negotiated
with the SLA Dean
SLA policy on sharing IDC
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25% of indirect funds on grants to PIs will be
returned to the PI’s home department and placed
in a special account
The account will be under the control of the chair,
with supervision and approval of its use by the
Dean of SLA
Of this 25% amount, 1/5 of the amount will be
reserved for use by the department, as
determined by the chair and with the approval of
the Dean of SLA
Of this 25% amount, 4/5 of the amount will be
available for use by the PI, with approval by the
chair and by the Dean
SLA policy on sharing IDC
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Approved uses of the amount available for use by the department include the
following items:
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a) scholarly support for faculty (e.g., travel, hardware and software purchases,
miscellaneous expenses)
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b) administrative support as needed
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c) teaching or research assistant support (e.g., summer stipends for TAs/RAs).
Approved uses of the amount available for use by the PI include the following
items:
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a) Scholarly support (e.g., travel, hardware and software purchases, miscellaneous
expenses, submission and reprint fees)
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b) Administrative support as needed
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c) Teaching or research assistant support
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d) Course buyouts (at the SLA academic year rate of 12.5% of academic year salary
per course)
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e) Summer support
No part of the amount available for use by the PI can be used for salary
enhancement
Awards to Louisiana Artists and
Scholars (ATLAS)
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The LABoR provides support to faculty in arts,
humanities, and social sciences disciplines to
complete major scholarly and artistic
productions
Must have a broad impact on a regional,
national, and/or international level
Applicants may seek not more than $50,000
over a one-year period
SLA views the ATLAS grants as a way for us to
extend a 1/2 year paid sabbatical to a fullyear paid sabbatical
October target date
Conclusions
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Funders are looking to fund research that is bold,
original, innovative, and transformative
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Pay attention to the funding agency’s goals and
review criteria as you craft your proposal
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Ask for advice
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Revise your proposal and submit again
Resources
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The Grantsmanship Center
http://www.tgci.com
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Chronicle of Philanthropy
http://philanthropy.com/
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Foundation Center
http://foundationcenter.org/
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Foundation Directory Online access:

NOPL, Technology Division, 504.596.2580
Thank You!
Thank You!
Thank You!