Submitting Proposals (2 of 3)

II. Narrative
The narrative should be presented on standard paper with a 12-point font size and one-inch margins. The narrative must not exceed five pages.

Background and Needs (3-4 paragraphs)

This section should provide a description of the specific issue your proposal will address. You should provide a brief history of how this issue has evolved in the environment in which your project or activity will focus and note any previous effort by your organization or others to address the issue. This section should give a clear sense of the scale of the problem and how it is related to improving health or health systems in communities. Other key information to include in this section:

• What data or information supports the need for your work?
• What is your best understanding of the social, political, environmental or other factors that contribute to the current conditions?
• Why should the existing range of policies, services or programs related to the issue be changed?
• Why is it timely or urgent to address this issue now?

Proposal (4-5 paragraphs)

This section should describe the work that you are proposing to do to address the specific issue that you have identified. The proposal should include how your work will help solve the problem and how it will improve health or health systems in communities.

You should also describe how your proposal will support one of The Endowment’s three goals. We do not expect that all funded activities will have a direct and immediate impact on The Endowment’s goals. However, it is important that the proposal include some linkage to broader changes in systems or policies. Other key information to include in this section is:

• What will your proposal do?
• Why are you using this approach? How do you know that your approach will be successful?
• How will you involve the community or connect with community-based knowledge and experience?
• Are there other organizations that you will work with? What will their role be in your proposal?
• If you are successful, how will your proposal support one of The Endowment’s three goals?

Objectives and Outcomes (2-3 paragraphs)

This section should list specific objectives and outcomes for your proposal. Objectives describe the activities you will do to achieve the purpose of your proposal. Objectives should be described in a way that gives a specific timeline for their completion and should be tracked to measure progress toward their achievement.

Objectives can include:

• A product, such as a completed needs assessment or a new model for health education; or
• A process, such as involving stakeholders in the development of a strategic plan for an organization or coalition, or successfully conducting a regional conference.

Your proposal should also include desired outcomes. Outcomes are the changes or benefits for individuals and communities that result from your proposal’s activities. Separate short-term and long-term outcomes should be developed that demonstrate how you know you are making progress over the course of your project. Your outcomes should include timelines and should be tracked in order to measure their achievement. Finally, these outcomes should be related to the broader impact on the problem that your proposal addresses.

Examples of outcomes include:

• An increase in the knowledge among a specific number of families in a neighborhood about a community health issue;
• The engagement of a health policymaker with your issue; or
• The implementation of a statewide strategy to provide health insurance coverage to all low-income children.

Evaluation (2-3 paragraphs)

This section should describe how you will monitor the progress you expect to make, how you will measure that you are achieving your objectives and outcomes, and how you will assess the impact of your project or activities on the problem described in your proposal.

The evaluation should describe:

• How you will document and measure your progress during the funding period;
• How you will use your information from your evaluation to improve your work and your organization;
• How you will share or disseminate what you have learned with your target community, key decision makers or broader audiences;
• How you will know that you are making progress toward your proposed outcomes;
• The staff or the external evaluator who will conduct the evaluation; and the experience or qualifications they have in conducting evaluations.

Organizational Capacity (1–2 paragraphs)

Discuss your organization’s ability to implement the proposed work. Also, describe your staff and board skills and diversity, how the proposal fits with your mission and history and whether you require a fiscal sponsor.

Risk Analysis (2–3 paragraphs)

Provide an analysis showing the possible barriers to achieving your objectives and how they will be addressed programmatically. Also discuss other public or private funding or in-kind resources required for the project. If you are unable to raise other revenue, how will that affect your ability to accomplish your objectives? If applicable, describe how you will sustain the proposed work after the grant period.