The 2023-24 school year was the first year since the 1999-2000 school year that I didn’t have grant money to spend (The End of a 24 Year Grant Streak). The bright side of that was that was also the first time in 24 years that I didn’t have to write an end of year report! 🙂
I’ve learned that going out looking for grants can be frustrating at best because in my experience grants just don’t work that way. In all the years I’ve written proposals and gotten grants, 53 total, I never went out looking for them. I heard about them and took the time to sit and write proposals for good projects (here are proposals that I have written and had success with). Grants are creatures of opportunity and not things to be relied on for funding, which is why it was amazing luck that I was able to get grants for 24 years straight!
So this past year I heard about a couple more grant opportunities and submitted three proposals. I got two of them (that’s another way to get grants, write as many proposals as you can! Both of the grants I got came from our very own Chimacum Arts and Fair organization! I also submitted a proposal to the Peninsula Credit Union grant program and did not get it.
The first grant I got was $2,000 to support our longstanding outdoor education program to Camp Cispus. These programs cost way more than schools can afford so community support is a great way to sustain such amazing experiences.
The second grant was $800 in support of my Environmental Stewardship Project (acceptance letter and check photo below)!
Will I get another grant this coming year for the following year? Who knows? Nothing is certain when it comes to grants.
