Make reports on time.

When you receive a grant from the Cheney Foundation the check will be accompanied by a transmittal letter for you to sign and return (a copy for your records is also enclosed). This letter asks that you make reports every six months until the project is completed.
Reports can be made more often, but don’t overwhelm the Foundation with reports just for the sake of making reports. Final reports can always be submitted as soon as the project is completed.

Reports should include both an update on the progress towards the project’s goals as well as an update on the project budget, including income as well as expenses.

Grant reports can help to develop the relationship between your organization and the Foundation. Grant reports should be concise, yet fully explain the issues at hand. If a project is proceeding as outlined in the original grant request, the report can be as simple as referencing the original schedule (both for programmatic progress and fund raising progress) and confirming that the schedule is being met.

If a situation arises that causes the organization to consider major changes in the project, it is best to write the Foundation sooner rather than later. The Foundation usually makes grants based upon the entirety of the proposal, not to specific line items. Therefore the Foundation wants to be informed about major changes in the nature of a project to which it has made a grant.

A request for another grant must begin with a separate proposal letter.

No matter how many times an organization has received a grant from the Ben B. Cheney Foundation, each grant request must begin with a new proposal letter. This letter should be separate from any grant report even if it is a request for additional funding for a project.

Consider the timing of requests within the context of several years.

As the number of requests to the Foundation grows there is an effort to increase the time period between consecutive grants. If your organization has a major project coming up in a year or two that you believe would be of interest to the Foundation, you may want to refrain from making other grant requests until that time.

The Foundation generally wants to see 20 to 24 months between when a grant has been made and the submission of another proposal letter. This timeframe applies to all grants, whether awarded through the small grant program or reviewed at a quarterly board meeting.

Keep the Foundation updated regarding key staff changes.

The key contact that the Foundation is most concerned about is usually the executive director. A change in executive directors can mark an important change in the way an organization approaches its work.

Changes in other key staff positions, such as the development director, may also affect the Foundation’s ability to communicate with your organization.

The Foundation staff will often meet with new executive directors or new development directors in organizations with current or past grants. Such meetings are intended for general discussions and not as opportunities to “pitch” a specific proposal.

Remember that your budget is only a plan.
When you submit either a proposal letter or a formal application you must include some budget information. The key questions that budgets answer are:

1. How much will the project cost?
2. Why will it cost that amount?
3. What are the major sources of funding for the project?
4. How do you plan to go about garnering those resources?

Once a project has been completed the Foundation likes to see an accounting for the project as compared to the original budget. If there are major changes in the actual income and expenditures as compared to the original budget, they should be explained.