At the beginning of the summer the interns were tasked with the goal of researching and working towards increased financial stability for Spirit of the Land. By developing a fundraising strategy, researching and applying for grants, we aimed to sustain and enhance Spirit of the Land programming.
After a preliminary introduction to the tasks and a meeting with Augustana’s Development Office, we decided to focus on granting opportunities during the summer and return our focus to other fundraising in the fall. One of the interns attended a grant writing workshop and developed a Grant Master List. Several major grants were located but we also learned that the requirements to submit applications through university channels would take time beyond our summer research mandates.
Research conducted in this area has provided some promising leads but, given the research focus of regular university channels, follow-up has included discussion about the possibility of establishing a Spirit of the Land NGO or charity. Regardless, we hope to continue our development of a fundraising strategy as we enter into the fall. You can read the full report here: spirit-of-the-land-grant-report.