The Grants Community | #GrantChat Highlights Part 1

As our blog name suggests, we are all about connecting and supporting the federal grants community. On May 1^st, we had a great time during the weekly #GrantChat on Twitter. In the #GrantChat Highlights 5-part series, we will recap key questions and share your contributions to the community.

What is the “grants community”? What does it mean to you?

We refer to the grants community often, so it’s important to reflect on and define what we – and other members of the community – mean:

A1: The grants community is a diverse group of people working together to implement public-serving programs. Connecting the grants community is why we are here #grantchat

— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) May 1, 2018

A1: The ‘Grants Community’ is a community of people who work in the public and private sector who give, seek, and manage grants and support each other through understanding, mentoring, humor, learning opportunities, networking, and more. #grantchat #grantswork #nonprofit

— Jo Miller, GPC (@jomillergpc) May 1, 2018

A1: A community of professionals who support one another through mentoring, advice, and understanding. #grantchat

— KY GPA Chapter (@KyGPA) May 1, 2018

A1: Colleagues. Friends that can ask each other endless questions and support each other in our difficult work. #grantchat

— Julie M. Johnson (@jorjastonej) May 1, 2018

A1: The grants community = passionate individuals working to make a difference for their community(ies) through grants! #grantchat

— Diane H. Leonard GPC (@DianeHLeonard) May 1, 2018

What do you recommend a person do on Day 1 when they enter the “grants world”?

Federal grants can be a lot to learn quickly, so we want to provide resources to make it easier to understand grants and hit the ground running for new grant professionals.

A2a: For people diving into grants for the first time, check out the Grants 101 section of the Grants Learning Center https://t.co/yoVH11OqKw #grantchat #LearnGrants

— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) May 1, 2018

Here are recommendations from a few of your professional peers as well:

A2: The ‘What Is a Grant?’ post is helpful for those brand new to federal grants & whose only understanding is “it’s money from the government.” Sure, that’s true, but there’s a bit more to it https://t.co/auphFaOa2c #grantchat

— Charlie Thomas (@stetCharlie) May 1, 2018

A2: Learn all about the organization they represent! Before anyone can effectively write a grant, one needs to understand the mission, the spirit, the goals, and the messaging! #grantchat

— Julie B. Portfolio (@jbarnofski) May 1, 2018

A2: I have always learned the most from people who have been in the biz longer than me – people resources are the best #grantchat https://t.co/9dRXCc6pde

— Wake Tech Grants (@wtcc_grants) May 1, 2018

A2: Join GPA, find mentors, and read everything you can find about grants, your org, and the community you serve #grantchat

— Amanda Ripstra, GPC (@AmandaRipstra) May 1, 2018

A2: Join #grantchat and @GPANational. Read Prepare for the GPC Exam. Watch the grant related recorded webinars on @charityhowto. #grantchat

— Bethany Turner, GPC (@turner_bethany) May 1, 2018

Thank you to all who contributed! To review the whole discussion, search for the hashtag #grantchat on Twitter.