Jojo Carey
Before getting assigned to your specific agency, one of the more eager processes that can create a bit of anxiety is getting assigned to your partner for the grant proposal. You can have various negative thoughts in your head, such as, what if they’re lazy? What if I end up having to do all the work? Or, maybe they can’t write well (and if so why did they take a grant writing class)? Maybe you just don’t know your partner that well, which can cause worry. You and your partner are just two strangers assigned to write a grant proposal together. Some may be okay with this,and will go through the process remaining strangers – but what would happen if you took the time to get to know your grant proposal partner? I decided to take the time to find out.
I was lucky enough to end up with a great partner. Her name is Ash! Ash is a Junior Religion major with a double minor in Non Profit Studies and Coaching Education. She’s one of JMU’s best student leaders as a Student Ambassador, an employee at our university’s gym UREC, and small group leader for her Christian group. Ultimately, Ash’s main goal in life is to help better others’ lives. I gathered all of this information plus more in a one-hour lunch meeting with her. I felt that getting to know her has already made this difficult process so much easier. Knowing that my partner is involved in a lot on campus, and vice versa, we’re able to have empathy for one another and split the work according to each other’s schedules.
I found that building a relationship with your partner is an essential step when writing a grant proposal. Learning about your partner’s passions, likes and dislikes can set up your expectations from what you both want from this experience – whether it’s to win the money or solely just gain knowledge on how to write a grant. Getting to know Ash made me more comfortable to address her with any concerns or questions I might have, especially after getting to know her communication style. We have also discovered many commonalities in each other’s lives which has strengthened our partnership and ability to perform well on our grant proposal. As Hellen Keller once said, “alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” I believe Ash and I will accomplish a lot together through this journey of writing a grant.