Grants Best Practices

Please reference the following information addressing continuous improvement efforts, recommendations, and quality grants practices.

State Resources
Cross-Sector Resources
Federal Resources
Evaluation

State Resources
- Financial Reconciliation Resources: Developed from 2016 cross-agency workgroup
- 2014 Enterprise-Wide Grants Kaizen Event
- In November 2014, seven state granting agencies participated in an Enterprise-Wide Federal Grants Kaizen event. Click here to learn more about Continuous Improvement. The scope and purpose was to shorten the timeline from when an initial federal appropriation is released to when a state agency fully executes a grant contract agreement. These resources were developed to support best practice in grant-making across the state enterprise and the formal recommendations from the Action Plan:
  - Best Practice Recommendations
  - Flow Chart for Federal Grant Pre-Award Process (PDF)
  - Internal Control Points for Federal Grant Pre-Award Process
  - Electronic Grants Management System Minimum Requirements: Identifies minimum standards for agencies to consider when investing
  - Electronic Grants Management System Data Elements: Identifies standard data elements that are important to include within an electronic grants management system. **This represents a starting point and is not a complete list.
- State Grantee Focus Group Synopsis
  Office of Grants Management
  Report from three focus groups held with state grantees
  State Grantee Focus Group Synopsis (PDF)
- Homeland Security and Emergency Management Grant Manual
  Minnesota Department of Public Safety - Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM)
  Clear, concise overview of all federal, state, and HSEM-specific grant management requirements
  HSEM Grant Manual and Information
Cross-Sector Resources
- Evidence-based Policymaking: A Guide for Effective Government
  Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative
- Results-Based Accountability
- Diversity and Inclusion in Grantmaking
  Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity
  Grantmaking with a Racial Equity Lens
  Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
  What is a justice funder?
  Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Philanthropy
- Grantcraft
  The Ford Foundation
  A collection of guides, cases and videos on the art and the science of grant-making
  Grantmaking & Philanthropy: GrantCraft - Practical Wisdom for Grantmakers, Foundations & Philanthropic Organizations
- Improving Grant Application and Reporting
  Please reference this information about improving grant making practices from Project Streamline
  Data Foundation, Transforming Federal Grant Reporting
- The Nonprofit Sector and Government: Clarifying the Relationship
  The Aspen Institute
  An overview of key principles for government-nonprofit relationships
Federal Resources
Federal Grants to State and Local Governments – Guidance from the G.A.O

An Introduction to Financial Management for Grant Recipients – Guidance from the National Archives
- Practical information on what is expected from grantee organizations in terms of fiscal accountability.
Best Practices and Resources: Government Finance Officers Association
Evaluation
- AEA Statement on Cultural Competence in Evaluation
  American Evaluation Association
  A brief overview on the importance of cultural competence in evaluation.
- Beginner Evaluation Guides
  Gene Shackman Ph. D. The Global Social Change Research Project
  A series of beginner friendly pamphlets on evaluation basics.
- Better Evaluation
  Many evaluation tools and resources, including the Rainbow Framework which organizes over 300 evaluation approaches into 7 clusters.
- Doing Evaluation In Service of Racial Equity - Every Child Thrives
  W.K. Kellogg Foundation
- Gather Credible Evidence
  Program Performance and Evaluation Office-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  Choosing data sources for an evaluation and creating a data source table for an evaluation plan.
- Logic Models
  Program Development and Evaluation-University of Wisconsin Extension
  Information about making logic models, free online training in logic models, logic model templates, and sample logic models.
- Lucid Chart
  Inexpensive, easy to use online flow chart design tool that is helpful for making logic models.
- Minnesota Evaluation Association (MNEA)
  Info about MNEA events and trainings, member directory, and evaluation resources.
- Program Evaluation: Is it Really That Hard?
  Dr. Vanessa S. O'Neal, Founder of the National Society of Grant Writing Professionals, Inc.
  Tips on writing an evaluation plan for a grant proposal from a Federal grant reviewer.
- Utilization Focused Evaluation (UFE) Checklist
  Michael Q. Patton
  A useful checklist for planning and conducting utilization focused evaluations.
- Guidelines and Framework for Designing Basic Logic Model
  Authenticity Consulting
  A basic guide to creating logic models