August 2026 ☀️ Did Your Grants Strategy Take a Vacation This Summer? August is that funny in-between month: vacations are winding down, back-to-school energy is picking up, and fall deadlines are suddenly a lot closer than they looked in June.So here’s the question: Did your grants strategy take a summer vacation too?If so, no judgment. Summer can be a lot. But if your team is finalizing your 2026 budget, adjusting your fiscal roadmap, or looking ahead to fall and winter submissions, this is...
8 days ago • 9 min read
July 2026 Freedom From Funding Chaos 🗽 July is full of independence talk—so let’s claim a kind of independence nonprofits rarely get enough of: 🎆 Freedom from grant chaos. 🎆 Freedom from last-minute deadline sprints. 🎆 Freedom from chasing low-fit opportunities. 🎆 Freedom to focus on mission while your funding strategy runs like a system—not a fire drill. This month, we’re focusing on two practical ways to get there: 1. Using July as your strategic drafting window (so fall deadlines don’t run...
29 days ago • 4 min read
Hello, community. July is often framed around independence, fireworks, and freedom—so let’s talk about a kind of freedom nonprofits don’t celebrate enough: 💥Freedom from funding chaos.✨Freedom from chasing every RFP.🌟Freedom from last-minute proposal sprints.🔥Freedom to focus on impact…without burning out your people. Here are a few “freedom moves” you can make this month—pulled from Carinci Consulting resources and a few external reads that pair well with summer strategy. 1) Declare...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Warm greetings, mission-driven leaders: If you’re anything like me, June is a great month for a little “read + recalibrate” before fall deadlines start crowding the calendar. Below is a short roundup of what I’ve been reading lately—each with a quick takeaway you can actually use in your grant strategy. 1) The donor base is shrinking—even when headline giving looks “fine” This SSIR piece highlights a major trend: total giving can look healthy while the number of giving households declines,...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
June 2026 ☀️ Mid-Year Check-In (No Panic Required) Let’s be honest, nonprofit teams are juggling a lot—program delivery, staffing, events, board needs, and about 47 other priorities. June is that month where the year quietly clears its throat and says, “Hey…how’s that plan going?” 😅 If this question has you sweating like undecided seniors being asked for college or career plans, the good news is you don’t need a total overhaul—you usually just need a quick reset and a clearer game plan for...
2 months ago • 5 min read
May 2026 Fund What Works: The May Grants Mindset Shift 🌱May has a way of making everything feel like it should be growing—plants, plans, programs…proposal pressure included. But in grantland, “bigger” isn’t always better. In fact, one of the most strategic moves a nonprofit can make is resisting the urge to chase growth for growth’s sake. This month, we’re leaning into a more fundable (and sustainable) idea: depth over hype. The organizations that win consistently aren’t always the ones doing...
3 months ago • 5 min read
April 2026 🌱 From One Workshop to What’s Next April often feels like a reset—the moment when ideas that have been sitting quietly start to take shape. Recently, I had the opportunity to lead a grant strategy workshop at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), and I’m still thinking about the conversations that came out of it. Thank you to AACTE for the invitation—and to everyone who showed up ready to think differently about funding. One thing that stood out: the...
4 months ago • 6 min read
March 2026 🥊March Matchups — Make Your Grants Portfolio Work Harder March is where the year gets real. Q1 momentum is building, deadlines are starting to stack, and the question becomes: Are you choosing the right opportunities—or just the next ones? This month’s theme is March Matchups—because grant success isn’t only about writing well. It’s about picking battles you can actually win and punching above your weight. When your proposals go to funders that truly match your mission, capacity,...
5 months ago • 5 min read
February 2026 🧡 Welcome to New (and Returning!) Grant Gurus and Novices If you’re new here—welcome! 🎉 This newsletter is written by me, Jennifer Carinci, Ed.D., PMP, Founder & Principal Consultant at Carinci Consulting and produced with help from my team. (Special shout out to Sam!) We partner with nonprofits, school districts, and higher education institutions to design smart grant strategies, write competitive proposals, and build sustainable funding pipelines. We’ve had a record number of...
6 months ago • 7 min read