# Qualities of a successful proposal Jethro Jones I am reviewing this proposal by myself, and it is quite the learning opportunity for me. My thoughts are below, and while they may seem scattered, I'm still trying to orient myself to this way of thinking, as it is not something that I have done before. A couple key takeaways for my own learning and growth in this area: 1. Pay attention to the details. Personally, I struggle with details, and this will likely be the biggest part of my challenge here. I believe I would benefit greatly from working with someone who is detail oriented to make sure I don't miss something significant. 1. Identity the needs of the committee. It's quite easy to get focused on what you want as the writer of the grant, but it is quite another thing to really try to understand what the RFP writers were really thinking as they put together the grant. Now, we will get into the analysis of the grant. I'm focusing my analysis not so much on the specific questions asked in the assignment, but in what I think the purpose of the assignment is. If you want me to just answer the questions, I'm happy to, but that won't be as beneficial for either of us, as obviously the grant application met the requirements because it was funded! You already know that better than any of us! My approach here is to quote specific passages from the RFP or the application and give commentary according to that. I will start with an analysis of the RFP itself. Quotes from the RFP below are shown using blockquotes, regardless of length. My notes on each quote immediately follow. > support the development of a career pathway for individuals to gain the necessary skills and experience needed to bring the observations and concerns of schools and classroom teachers into the sphere of research while also working on transferring findings from the lab that could be useful in real world educational settings. This is the stated purpose of the RFP. They are looking to get people from PhD to Profession in schools, transferring the findings from the lab environment to real world educational settings. It's not just about theory. > There must be core project team members representing the St. Louis area school systems as central partners in the proposed program. Whoever wins this prize will be focused on and already partners with St. Louis area schools. > Fellows should acquire a deep understanding of the multi-level structure of school systems, how they work, who does what, and how decisions are made. They're not looking for people to observe schools, but looking for people to *know* schools. > Fellows should come to fully appreciate the opportunities and challenges of working for change within the public school educational and administrative structure. > The program must provide Fellows with experiences and mentoring that will allow them to develop the confidence and leadership skills necessary to serve as an expert on learning sciences research while working as partners in a teambased, school-centric environment with education professionals The successful program will do more than just employ fellows. It will work with them to help them truly understand schools. > Fellows should receive a mix of formal academic training and practical translational experience within the educational system leading to professional skill development that will enable them to pursue careers with a variety of organizations which undertake translational educational or policy work, school districts, or non-profits Honestly, I don't really understand what translational work means in this context. I believe it means translating from science to practice, but the RFP assumes knowledge and understanding of what that word means. > training activities intended to allow Fellows with empirical research backgrounds to develop the working knowledge and skills that are needed to transition to new career paths in education One clear goal is to help these fellows pursue job opportunities in the school system. Unfortunately, most school systems are pretty insular, and outsiders are not welcome. Often employees won't accept recommendations of those above them if they haven't performed the same job that person is currently performing. > The application should primarily focus on the details of the training plan and a description of how the institution will meet the goals outlined above. It is critical that applications document strong links to St. Louis Schools. The plan must include details about how the program will recruit Fellows. A couple of requirements. Even if I were capable of doing this work, since I don't already have strong ties to St. Louis schools, it would be exceptionally hard for me to win this award myself. ## Proposal The following is an analysis of the proposal. Quotations from the application (regardless of length) are served up in a block quote format. My thoughts will immediately follow. > Our mission at the University of Missouri St. Louis (UMSL) is simple: We transform lives. This mission is embedded into our core values of integrity, inclusion, innovation, access, and success, as well as our commitment to the local community as a Carnegie Foundation "Community Engaged Campus." The first page of the proposal details all the ways in which the UMSL COE has the capacity, capability, and network partnerships to support the grant to its completion. I would argue that it seems that very few institutions would actually have capacity to make this happen. It would be difficult for an outside-of-St.-Louis-agency to come in and make this happen. My first main takeaway is that you should seek grants that you are uniquely qualified to fulfill. > 1) Develop fellow data acquisition, management, and visualization skills to inform decision-making related to educational practice and policy and support research-practice partnerships; 2) Develop fellow confidence and leadership skills necessary to serve as an expert on learning sciences research while working as partners in a team-based, school-centric environment with education professionals; 3) Develop fellow understanding of the multi-level structure of school systems, how they work, who does what, and how decisions are made; 4) Develop fellow skills to pursue careers with a variety of organizations that undertake translational educational or policy work; and 5) Develop fellow appreciation of the opportunities and challenges of working for change within the public school educational and administrative structure. Appendix A includes to budget narrative to meet the grant's overarching goal and objectives. 1 on the proposal relates to #4 on the RFP 2 on the proposal relates to #3 on the RFP 3 on the proposal relates to #1 on the RFP. 4 on the proposal relates to #5 on the RFP. 5 on the proposal relates to #2 on the RFP. It is not clear exactly how those goals will be met, just yet. I suppose that is not necessary, as this is a multi-year grant and that information will be developed later on during the process. > Eighteen translational fellows will be recruited over six years. The proposal clearly explains that there are only six fellows each year when the COE has access to over 60 graduating students each year. This shows their recruitment pool is deep. > The UMSL-CSTF core and school leadership team will look for candidates who:1) Have > earned a Ph.D. or EdD in education, learning sciences, or psychology (granted in the past three years); 2) Have a clear interest in conducting translational work (i.e., some evidence from professional or volunteer activities of an aptitude for working successfully outside of academia); 3) Seek to impact positive growth/change in the school community; and 4) Are flexible and able to interact and collaborate with educators from multiple disciplines. This paragraph clearly aligns to the requirements for fellows in the RFP. > Four Core Fellowship Activities During the two years of service, fellows will be engaged in four core activities conducted > in two-year cycles with each fellowship cohort across the UMSL Charter Schools. Activities include completing cycles of inquiry, participating in and co-leading interactive seminars, enhancing coaching skills, and collaborating with mentors. The Four Core Fellowship Activities section details the training that will occur as the “details of the training plan” and the “description of how the institution will meet the goals outlined”. > Education (MODESE). Seminars will be held at UMSL COE, school sites, and MODESE. See Appendix C-f for the MODESE letter of support. Unfortunately the appendices weren’t included. ## Summary The proposal aligns well with the stated goals of the RFP. While this may have been written by committee, to my untrained eye (this is literally the first RFP and application I have ever read) it seemed surprisingly clear what the funders wanted from the applications.