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Center for Grant Excellence
By Witt O'Brien's | Ambipar Response
Guide to Federal Grants
I. General Grant Information
Foundational knowledge covering essential concepts, terminology, and processes that apply across all federal grant activities. This section provides the fundamental understanding needed before pursuing and managing federal financial assistance.
i. The Basic Grants Lifecycle - Coming Soon!
ii. Origins of Grant Programs - Coming Soon!
i. Grant Research Using Federal Sources - Coming Soon!
ii. Understanding a Notice of Funding Opportunity – Coming Soon!
iii. Basic Components of a Grant Application – Coming Soon!
iv. Grants.gov Quick Start Guide – Coming Soon!
i. Governance for Grants and Cooperative Agreements – Coming Soon!
ii. Federal Award Relationships and Responsibilities - Coming Soon!
iii. Introduction to Uniform Administrative Requirements 2 CFR 200
iv. Compliance versus Reporting - Coming Soon!
i. Basic Financial Terms in Pursuing and Administering Federal Grants - Coming Soon!
ii. Comparison of Federal Financial Assistance and Federal Procurement - Coming Soon!
iii. How Funding is Disbursed - Coming Soon!
iv. The Federal Budget Process - Coming Soon!
v. Fiscal Years - Coming Soon!
II. Pre-Award Phase
Comprehensive guidance for actions that happens before receiving a grant award, from organizational preparation, grant research and pursuance, to application development and submission. This phase focuses on positioning for success, leveraging grant strategy, and creating competitive grant proposals.
i. SAM.gov and Acquiring a Unique Entity Identifier - Coming Soon!
ii. Assessing Staff Readiness – Coming Soon!
iii. Assessing Financial Readiness - Coming Soon!
iv. Reactive versus Proactive Grant Seeking - Coming Soon!
v. Performing an Inventory of Grants - Coming Soon!
vi. Developing a Research and Pursuance Plan - Coming Soon!
vii. Establishing Effective Grant Policy - Coming Soon!
viii. Analyzing a Federal Budget for Impacts to Grant Programs - Coming Soon!
ix. Scenario Planning: Alternative Funding Sources - Coming Soon!
x. Scenario Planning: The Local Response to Federal Funding Shifts - Coming Soon!
iii. Avoiding Supplanting - Coming Soon!
iv. Readiness for Programmatic Projects - Coming Soon!
v. Readiness for Construction Projects - Coming Soon!
vi. Grant Portfolio & Policy Inventory Template - Coming Soon!
i. Grant Research Using Federal Sources
ii. Grant Research Using Other Aids – Coming Soon!
i. Pre-Award Application Review - Coming Soon!
ii. Awarding Agency Solicitation Development - Coming Soon!
iii. NOFO/RFP Checklist – Grantor’s - Coming Soon!
iv. Understanding Key Terms in a Notice of Funding Opportunity - Coming Soon!
v. Pass-Through Entity Responsibilities Checklist - Coming Soon!
vi. Eligibility Information - Coming Soon!
vii. Program Description - Coming Soon!
viii. Federal Award Information - Coming Soon!
ix. Submission Requirements and Deadlines - Coming Soon!
x. Application Review Information - Coming Soon!
xi. Federal Award Notices - Coming Soon!
xii. Post-Award Requirements and Administration - Coming Soon!
xiii. Other Information - Coming Soon!
i. Building an Internal Grants Team - Coming Soon!
ii. Grant Pursuance Items for Consideration - Coming Soon!
iii. Grant Opportunity Approval to Apply - Coming Soon!
iv. Grant Pursuance Go-No-Go Overview - Coming Soon!
v. Grant Pursuance Matrix - Coming Soon!
vi. Grant Pursuance Matrix Checklist - Coming Soon!
i. Using Grants.gov and Developing an SOP - Coming Soon!
ii. Recipient Application Preparation Overview - Coming Soon!
i. Federal Agency Program Planning and Design - Coming Soon!
ii. Providing Public Notice - Coming Soon!
iii. Notices of Funding Opportunity - Coming Soon!
iv. Merit Review of Applicants - Coming Soon!
v. Risk Review of Applicants - Coming Soon!
vi. Specific Conditions - Coming Soon!
vii. Other Items of Note - Coming Soon!
i. Beginning with the Heilmeier Catechism - Coming Soon!
ii. Logic Models - Coming Soon!
iii. Theories of Change - Coming Soon!
iv. Using Strong and Applicable Evidence - Coming Soon!
v. Designing Process and Outcome Evaluations - Coming Soon!
vi. Planning for Equity - Coming Soon!
vii. Planning for Sustainability - Coming Soon!
viii. Community Engagement - Coming Soon!
ix. Forming Community Partnerships - Coming Soon!
x. Workforce Development - Coming Soon!
xi. Letters of Support - Coming Soon!
xii. Working with Your Delegation - Coming Soon!
xiii. Budget Development - Coming Soon!
xiv. Demonstrating Capacity for Compliance - Coming Soon!
xv. Budget Narrative & Justification Template - Coming Soon!
xvi. Budget Development Tool - Coming Soon!
xvii. Creating a Memorandum of Understanding - Coming Soon!
i. Working with Grant Writers - Coming Soon!
ii. Answering Required Questions - Coming Soon!
iii. Including Appropriate Citations - Coming Soon!
iv. Formatting Tips - Coming Soon!
v. Grammar Tips - Coming Soon!
vi. Readability Tips - Coming Soon!
III. Award Phase
Resources regarding the transition period between application approval and active grant management; covering award notifications, understanding grant agreements, and establishing working relationships with federal program officers.
i. Understanding Award Statuses - Coming Soon!
ii. What to Expect During the Award Phase - Coming Soon!
iii. How Awards Connect Your Application to Your Post-Award Compliance - Coming Soon!
i. Understanding a Federal Grant Agreement - Coming Soon!
i. Suggestions for Building a Positive Working Relationship with Federal Agency Points of Contact (POC) - Coming Soon!
IV. Post-Award Phase
Resources during the active management period covering all responsibilities once a grant is awarded, including compliance, financial management, procurement, subrecipient management and monitoring, reporting, and day-to-day administration of funded projects.
i. Executing a Grant Award - Coming Soon!
ii. Contract Type Comparison - Coming Soon!
i. Finding Compliance Requirements - Coming Soon!
ii. Understanding the Compliance Hierarchy - Coming Soon!
iii. Implementing Compliance Requirements - Coming Soon!
iv. Change Management & Creating a Compliance Mindset - Coming Soon!
v. Risk Management - Coming Soon!
i. The Grants Management Lifecycle and Internal Controls - Coming Soon!
ii. Importance of Internal Controls - Coming Soon!
iii. Establishing and Maintaining Internal Controls - Coming Soon!
iv. Components of Internal Controls - Coming Soon!
v. The Green Book for Internal Controls - Coming Soon!
vi. Financial Management Basics - Coming Soon! - Coming Soon!
vii. Cash vs Accrual Accounting Basics - Coming Soon!
viii. Managing Program Income - Coming Soon!
ix. How Funds are Distributed - Coming Soon!
x. Time and Effort Tracking and Reporting - Coming Soon!
xi. Invoice Review Procedures - Coming Soon!
xii. Title VI Self-Assessment - Coming Soon!
xiii. Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports (ACFR) - Coming Soon!
xiv. Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA) - Coming Soon!
xv. GAAP, FASAB, GASB, and GAAS - Coming Soon!
xvi. Financial and Programmatic Award Amendments - Coming Soon!
xvii. Contractor vs Subrecipient Determinations - Coming Soon!
i. Standards for Inventory Management Systems - Coming Soon!
ii. Disposing of Grant-Funded Property - Coming Soon!
i. Basics Principles of Procurement - Coming Soon!
ii. Procurement Under Federal Grants - Coming Soon!
iii. The Importance of Competitive Procurement - Coming Soon!
iv. Sole-Source Procurement - Coming Soon!
v. Other Methods of Procurement - Coming Soon!
vi. Types of Procurement Contracts - Coming Soon!
vii. Procurement Thresholds - Coming Soon!
viii. Understanding Procurement Splitting - Coming Soon!
ix. Avoiding Conflicts of Interest in Procurement - Coming Soon!
x. Creating a Request for Information - Coming Soon!
xi. Creating a Request for Qualifications - Coming Soon!
xii. Creating a Request for Proposal - Coming Soon!
xiii. How to Write a Scope of Work - Coming Soon!
xiv. How to Score a Proposal - Coming Soon!
xv. Creating a Compliant Contract - Coming Soon!
xvi. Suspension and Debarment Checks - Coming Soon!
xvii. Executing a Procurement Contract - Coming Soon!
xviii. Managing Vendors and Contractors - Coming Soon!
xix. Creating a Vendor Management Plan - Coming Soon!
xx. Measuring Vendor Performance
i. Understanding Performance Monitoring and Reporting - Coming Soon!
ii. Understanding Financial Monitoring and Reporting - Coming Soon!
i. Responsibilities of a Pass-Through Entity - Coming Soon!
ii. The Competitive Subrecipient Award Process - Coming Soon!
iii. The Non-Competitive Subrecipient Award Process - Coming Soon!
iv. Risk Assessment Matrix for Grantors - Coming Soon!
v. Subrecipient Monitoring Guide – What to Expect - Coming Soon!
vi. Providing Technical Assistance - Coming Soon!
vii. Monitoring and Subrecipient - Coming Soon! Monitoring
viii. Conducting Monitoring Activities - Coming Soon!
ix. Corrective Action Plans - Coming Soon!
x. Corrective Action Plan Template - Coming Soon!
i. Basic Requirements of Record Retention and Access - Coming Soon!
i. Why Noncompliance Matters - Coming Soon!
ii. Types of Noncompliance - Coming Soon!
iii. Preventing Fraud, Waste, and Abuse - Coming Soon!
iv. Detecting Fraud, Waste, and Abuse - Coming Soon!
v. Remedies for Noncompliance - Coming Soon!
i. Cost Principles – Basic Considerations - Coming Soon!
ii. Allowability and Cost Principles - Coming Soon!
iii. Allocability and Cost Principles - Coming Soon!
iv. Reasonability and Cost Principles - Coming Soon!
v. Direct vs Indirect Costs - Coming Soon!
V. Closeout Phase
Final activities required to properly conclude a grant including closeout procedures, final reporting, property disposition, and audit processes.
i. Grant Closeout Period - Coming Soon!
ii. Final Settlements and Determinations - Coming Soon!
iii. Post-Closeout Considerations - Coming Soon!
iv. Property Disposition - Coming Soon!
v. Final Reporting - Coming Soon!
i. Overview of Audit Requirements and Responsibilities - Coming Soon!
ii. Types of Audits - Coming Soon!
iii. Audits within the Grants Management Lifecycle - Coming Soon!
iv. Single Audits - Coming Soon!
v. Organizations Involved in the Single Audit Process - Coming Soon!
vi. The Single Audit Process - Coming Soon!
vii. Audit Preparation - Coming Soon!
viii. Using the Compliance Supplement - Coming Soon!
ix. Researching Audits - Coming Soon!
x. Audit Findings - Coming Soon!
xi. Finishing an Audit - Coming Soon!
xii. An Overview of the Yellow Book - Coming Soon!
xiii. Grant File Audit Checklist - Coming Soon!
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