Article
Grant Applications
The FSSA Grants Office serves as a central hub for all federal program and discretionary grant application submissions. The Office receives, reviews, and preserves a record of all award notifications and grant documents within the newly implemented Euna Solutions grants management system (formerly eCivis). In addition to Euna Solutions, the grants team maintains several FSSA accounts in federal electronic grant management application systems, such as: Grants.gov, GrantSolutions, eRA Commons, and the DOJ Grants Management System. Registration in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) and the FSSA DUNS number, which allows FSSA to do business with the federal government, is also managed by the Grants Office.
Identification of Opportunities
Indiana’s FSSA Grants Office engages with division leadership to develop a collective understanding of trends in federal funding priorities. This collaborative effort allows the grants team to explore new funding sources for planning and innovation. The Grants Office reviews new funding opportunities as they are announced through federal publications or referrals and assess their relevance to each FSSA division. When an appropriate opportunity is identified, the office will provide the division with a New Grant Overview Form, summarizing the opportunity for review. If the division decides to pursue the grant, leadership will complete the form by providing a brief justification and indicating the proposed grant activities.
Division team members who discover a funding announcement or grant opportunity of interest should contact the Grants Office immediately for guidance navigating the grant approval and application process.
Approval to Apply
Indiana FSSA Divisions are required to obtain approval from the Indiana State Budget Agency prior to applying for any federal discretionary or program grant opportunity.
The Grants Office partners with SBA and divisions to obtain all necessary approvals before the application submission deadline and is the sole liaison for completing the pursuance approval process. While SBA performs a review of the funding opportunity, division staff proceeds with the application development process.
Since its implementation, the Grants Office has been using the Euna Solutions to carry out the SBA approval process. When a new funding opportunity is identified for pursuance consideration the Office creates a grant project in Euna Solutions ecithat is used to execute the approval process, store documentation, and monitor the grant’s lifecycle.
Divisions are encouraged to contact the Grants Office with any questions or concerns that arise while preparing their applications for submission.
Resources for Developing Applications
The Grants Office provides several resources to division staff to assist in the federal funding application development process. Each resource has the capacity to be customized to specific grant application requirements.
- Grant Overview & Summary Forms (Includes application process details & timeline)
- Narrative & Budget Templates
- Sample Applications (Project & Budget Narratives etc.)
- Risk Assessments & Questionnaires
- Required Standard Forms
- Application Preparation Assistance
- Business Assessment Questionnaires
- Facilitation Assistance
The Grants Office submits all funding opportunity applications at least two days prior to the designated federal deadline. Early application submission ensures the Grants Office has ample time to address any technical issues that may arise during the electronic submission process.
All final application drafts and associated supporting documentation must be submitted to the Grants Office at least seven calendar days prior to the federal application deadline. The Grants Office compiles, edits, and formats the final version of the application for submission. The final review ensures all applications are in compliance with federal application formatting, budget, narrative requirements, and complies with FSSA established grant application standards.