In order to help increase the number of grants written and awarded to agencies that serve Cheshire County residents, the Cheshire County Grants Department presents this free course.

Please register with this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9B3XW9Z

Tuesdays May 6, 2025 to June 10, 2025, 9:00 to 1:00 (with optional networking until 2:30)

Location: Cheshire County Hall (the historic Cheshire County Courthouse) at 12 Court Street, Keene, NH in Delegation Hall (grand room on second floor). Each topic includes a warmup interactive group activity, then a lecture with a physical respite in the middle, and suggested homework/activities to practice grant writing. It is optional to submit homework for feedback. There will be a 30-minute refreshment and networking break between topics. The room will remain open and available for up to 1.5 hours after the second topic for networking and to complete homework with coaching from the instructor.

Presenter: Cheshire County Grants Manager Suzanne Bansley will present this course on behalf of the County of Cheshire. She has been working in the grants field for 12 years and is a certified grant professional with an MBA in Managing for Sustainability and a bachelor’s degree specializing in finance. Suzanne has a flare for government grants and quirky enjoyment of budgets. She has written over 115 awarded grants to date totaling more than $30 million dollars.

Eligibility:

• Work for a Cheshire County serving nonprofit or municipality organization (whether an employee or volunteer);
• One person per nonprofit or two per municipality, more if seats are available 1 week prior
• Be tasked with (or volunteer for) writing a grant for your organization;
• Be of novice or beginner level;
• Not have attended the previous free grant writing course offered by Cheshire County (unless class isn’t full within 1 week prior to start);
• Be able to attend all classes;
• Participate in class interactions;
• Write a grant during the course (submission is optional);
• Give feedback during the course and at the end.

This course will help guide you through the very basics of grant writing and expand your ability to write a competitive grant for a Cheshire County nonprofit. By the end of this course, you should be able to search for a grant, identify if it is feasible, determine if the project is competitive, write a narrative proposal, and assemble a budget. With very limited grant funding being available, the more skilled Cheshire County potential grantees are, the more funds will flow into the county to benefit everyone.

Confirmations of acceptance into the course will be sent within 3 business days of registering. Entry is first come first served for eligible participants. If you do not have a seat in this course, and you are eligible, your name and contact information will be held on file for notice of the next course (tentatively in the fall 2025).

Schedule:

Date	Topic	Times
Tuesday May 6th	Overview, complexity, and expectations Refreshment & networking break Goals, objectives, and activities Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30
Tuesday May 13th	Logic model and work plan Refreshment & networking break Outputs, outcomes, and impacts Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30
Tuesday May 20th	Evaluation Refreshment & networking break Problem statement Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30
Tuesday May 27th	Sustainability Refreshment & networking break Organizational capability Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30
Tuesday June 3rd	Budget inclusion items Refreshment & networking break Budget calculations and justifications Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30
Tuesday June 10th	Readiness & searching Refreshment & networking break Application types & alignment Networking/coaching	9:00-10:45 10:45-11:15 11:15-1:00 1:00-2:30

 

Questions: sbansley@co.cheshire.nh.us