Compass Points – Grant Writing and Consulting Services

Have you ever tried writing a grant proposal? Are you intimidated by the whole “GRANTS” process?

Or are you frustrated by funders rejecting your program ideas… or by the time and resource constraints that make it nearly impossible for you to prepare a competitive proposal??

Would you like some help?

Compass Points is a Grant Writing and Consulting Service ready to assist your organization in preparing grant proposals and securing grant funding that can further your mission. With 25 years of grant writing and grants administration experience, we can help you make the best use of your resources to achieve your funding goals.

Professional Experience

Grant Writing and Grants Administration
We provide Independent Grants Consulting Services, including grant writing and grants administration services, for profit and non-profit businesses and organizations. We have experience with local, state, and national funding opportunities, and we can assist you with government and foundation funding proposals.
Our 25 years of grant writing experience have resulted in the funding of 70+ proposals totaling $16 Million for Energy, Education, Social Services, Health Care, Technology, Manufacturing, and Economic Development projects.

Large Grant Awards

Grant News:

Congratulations to Partridge Creek Farm in Ishpeming, MI on their newest grant award…a $300,000 USDA Grant for developing their composting operation that will assist Ishpeming businesses and residents in lowering what waste goes to the landfill even as their compostable waste is converted into reusable soil.

$3.4 Million for Bay College (Escanaba, MI) through the Michigan Jobs Commission for the construction of the Michigan Technical Education CenterSM (M-TEC^SM)
$3.75 Million for Bay College in six energy grants through the Michigan Public Service Commission and the State of Michigan Energy Office for energy efficiency upgrades for public and private entities.
$3,000,000 for Bay College in 30 manufacturers’ grants through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for employee training
$1,500,000 for Loc Performance Products (Plymouth, MI) through the State of Michigan for clean energy manufacturing
$800,000 for Northern Initiatives (Marquette, MI) through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Community Services for Community Economic Development
$750,000 for Michigan GREEN (Brighton, MI) through the Michigan Public Service Commission for energy efficiency upgrades for public housing facilities
$769,000 for Clean Green Energy (Brighton, MI) through the U.S. Department of Energy for midsize wind turbine development
$325,000 for Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital (Manistique, MI) through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Foundation, Michigan Center for Rural Health, and Michigan Health Endowment Fund to establish substance use disorder treatment programs
$300,000 for Bay College (Escanaba, MI) through Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration for a research grant on hearings safety in the forest products industry
$210,000 for Room At The Inn (Marquette, MI) through the Cliffs Foundation (Cleveland, OH) and Rio Tinto/Cliffs Community Investment Fund (Marquette, MI) for the purchase of a warming center to serve the area’s homeless population
$194,400 for Cedar Tree Institute (Marquette, MI) through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for energy efficiency upgrades for faith communities across the Upper Peninsula
$132,515 for St. Clare Hospital (Fenton, MO) through U.S.D.A. Rural Development Agency for a telemedicine system

Education/Training

Douglas Russell is our principal grant writer. He has been trained and certified as a grant writer, and he is ready to assist you with your pursuit of grant funding.

Grants Professionals Certification Institute (GPCI) – Credentialed Grants Professional, Certification – December 2011
The Grantsmanship Center: 5-day grant writing seminar, 2003/3-day seminar, 1994
Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti – Master of Arts – Guidance & Counseling
The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor – Bachelor of Arts, English Education

Services/Fee Structure

Compass Points is a fee-for-service business for all grant-related activities: 1) Researching funding opportunities, 2) Preparation/Editing of grant proposals, and 3) Providing grants administration services. We can help you with every phase of the grants process, so you can focus on what you do best…your programs.

Just to be clear. The proposal development process does not happen in a vacuum. It requires your active participation to be successful. You know your organization best, so you must be prepared to dedicate the time necessary to create the most compelling proposal possible.

Grant funding is an incredibly competitive process, and we need to be comprehensive in our approach to your request for funding. We want to submit the best proposal so that the reviewers are convinced that your proposal deserves their funding. You can help by responding as quickly as possible to all requests for information regarding your:
1) Organization’s Information and History
2) Project Plan
3) Project Timeline
4) Project Budget

In most cases we will have a limited amount of time to develop your proposal, so any delays in the information gathering process will result in less time to prepare that best possible proposal.

Lastly, my contract with you requires the payment of a 40% retainer fee before our work together begins. (Example: a $2,000 contract for proposal development services requires that an $800 retainer be paid before my work begins on your project. Your final bill (the total contract amount minus the retainer fee) is due upon submission of your grant proposal.

I look forward to discussing your funding needs and funding opportunities. It will be my privilege to help you develop a compelling story around your initiative’s goals and objectives and secure funding for your project.

I’M READY! LET’S GO!

Testimonials

Doug was wonderful to work with. He made an effort to meet with our entire grant team in person to understand our vision for the project. His vast understanding of the non-profit sector and underprivileged populations was extremely helpful. Doug worked tirelessly with our team via phone and email until we achieved a product that we felt comfortable submitting to our funders. We were successful with all grant submissions and were very pleased with Doug’s work ethic and his written skills.

Sara Giles

Marketing Director 7870W US Highway 2 Manistique, MI 49854

Over the past 15 years Doug’s grant writing skills have secured ten different grants for us totaling over $2 Million. In addition, he has managed the grants for us, including all reporting requirements, which has allowed us to focus entirely on the scope of work. This facet is very important and much appreciated since navigating through the grant process can be daunting. Doug makes it very easy to understand and we’ve successfully completed every grant without any issues. We will not hesitate to use his expertise again if/when a grant opportunity presents itself.

Kevin Cook, CEA, CLEP

President/CEO PO Box 848 Jenison, MI 49429

My staff and I have worked with Doug on numerous grant projects that have been part of the evolving vision of the Cedar Tree Institute. As a grant writer and administrator, Doug has provided levels of insight and expertise that have reflected the highest standards in his field. He appreciates the complexity of the nonprofit world, knows how to meet deadlines, prepare documents, and works collaboratively to meet challenges. We have found him to be an excellent communicator, unpretentious and skilled in understanding personal and group dynamics. On numerous occasions he has assisted the Institute in finding common ground and shared values in moving forward with diverse and competing interest groups.

Jon Magnuson, MDiv., MSW, ACSW

Executive Director 403 E. Michigan Street Marquette, MI 49855

Contact Us

Douglas Russell | [email protected] – (906) 250-7461

Grants Calendar

Under Construction – Come back and visit the Calendar later this summer. We’ll keep you posted on our progress.