Government and Foundation Relations

Identify an opportunity and understand what is required to meet the guidelines. Grant applications often require several weeks or months to compile, so if you are interested in applying for a grant, you should start this process as soon as you become aware of the funding opportunity.

Meet with the dean or area VP to discuss and review the opportunity. If there is a decision to move forward, contact GFR to schedule a meeting.   

At the meeting, GFR staff will review the terms of the grant opportunity with you, and other grant development team members and assist you with completing the Intent to Apply for External Funding form, which is submitted by your dean or area VP for review and approval. The Intent to Apply form must be completed and signed by the appropriate individuals (as indicated on the form) before any grant application can be submitted. The completed, signed form indicates approval from the university for you to pursue this funding opportunity and commit university resources to the project.   

If the dean or area VP approves, GFR staff will design a development schedule, assign elements of the proposal to complete, notify Finance staff of the pending application, and confirm if the proposed timeline is achievable based on competing priorities to maintain normal university operations.

Drafts of the proposed budget/match are created with the assistance of GFR staff and then provided to the Finance staff for review/approval.   

After a continual process of drafts, review, and editing, the final narrative and budget will be ready for submission. Additional elements often are required for an application—partner letters, assurance and certification forms, proof of eligibility forms, letters of support, etc.—and the time it takes to compile these items needs to be taken into account.  

GFR staff prepare the final application and submit it to the funder. A complete copy will be sent to the program director/principal investigator, key members of the project, and Finance staff.

Finally, we wait. It can take up to six months to receive a response from the funder on some applications, and some funders may request additional information before making a final award decision.

The GFR office can assist with your search for a funder. Additionally, it can be helpful to subscribe to email notifications about upcoming grant opportunities from websites such as philanthropynewsdigest.org and grants.gov. We can also review any potential sponsors to determine if Mercyhurst is eligible to apply. Once we find a suitable sponsor for your project, our office helps in all stages of proposal development. For more information, please see our Grants Orientation handbook.

The program director is responsible for completing the Intent to Apply for External Funding form and obtaining signatures from all relevant departments. The GFR office needs the completed form at least fourteen business days before the application deadline; this allows ample time for review before the proposal is submitted. 

Mercyhurst has engaged McAllister & Quinn to help identify federal and other grants for which Mercyhurst would like to apply. Grant identifications are continuous and evolving as the funding sources, areas of emphasis, as well as Mercyhurst and its staff's interests change. When a grant is identified and Mercyhurst intends to apply, McAllister & Quinn will develop a specialized team specific to that grant with expertise in the field or within the funding agency. The time frame for preparation of a federal grant starts ideally three months before the deadline, so an excellent application may be developed. If you know of an upcoming federal grant you want to apply for, please contact the GFR director, who will bring it up to McAllister & Quinn for investigation and develop a team around the solicitation requirements.

Congratulations! Once notified of your grant approval, please contact the GFR director immediately. Once the director is contacted, they will inform the project director/principal investigator promptly. All documents, including the solicitation, application, budget, and award letter, will need to be shared with the GFR office. For more information, please refer to pages 6-7 of the Grants Orientation handbook. 

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Mercyhurst University was awarded $25,000 from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. The university will engage a historic preservation planning firm to complete the nomination of much of the campus-built environment to the National Register of Historic Places. Professor of History and Public History; Chris Magoc, Ph.D.; is leading the project.

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Mercyhurst University received $130,000 from the George I. Alden Trust, which will be used to update classrooms and classroom technology. Included in the update are ADA-compliant desks, whiteboards with installation, new projection screens, and digital podiums. Associate Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, John Olszowka, is leading the project.

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Mercyhurst University was awarded a four-year, $184,478 grant from the National Science Foundation. This collaborative research project involves Arcadia University, Mercyhurst University, LaSalle University, Villanova University, and St. Joseph’s University. It is designed to investigate the effectiveness of a Professional Development (PD) Program for STEM teachers to develop their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in teaching SSI and SJSP. Physics Department Chair, Joe Johnson, is a co-PI on the project.