Grantee Services

In the Planning phase, a potential grantee will identify a project or program that needs grant funding. A project plan should be developed in this phase, as well as a budget, timeline, milestones, and staffing needs.

Potential grantors and funding sources for your project or program must be identified, with special attention paid to each grantor’s specific application requirements.

Grantors often require detailed project descriptions, budgets, and schedules to be included in applications. Grantors may also require applicants to provide financial statements, business organization documents, documentation of internal controls, and/or information about accounting systems. Grantor funding opportunity announcements should describe the format and content required in a grant application.

Grant applicants are notified by the grantor whether or not they were approved for grant funding. The grantee generally must formally accept the award and its terms and conditions. In doing so, the grantee accepts the funding, and acknowledges that it understands and will abide by the grantor’s requirements for the grant.

The grantee is responsible for proper grant management and performing the intended work for the project or program. The grant may be provided to you in a lump sum, or more commonly as a series of reimbursements. A specialized grant accounting system should be in place to track grant spending. The grantor should provide technical assistance to the grantee as needed during this phase. The grantor will often require the grantee to submit periodic financial and performance reports to monitor progress. The grantor or an external auditor may also conduct desk reviews (a form of remote audit), site visits, or audits during this phase.

During this phase, the grantee should also be thinking about future funding if needed, including searching and applying for additional funding.

During Closeout, the grantor will often require final financial and performance reports to show that the grant was fully expended and the project or program was completed as intended. The grantor may require that any remaining grant funds be returned. The grant may be subject to audit during this phase.

After Closeout, the grantor may require the grantee to retain grant records for a specified period of time, during which those records can be subject to audit.