Grant Writing

RPPG provides comprehensive grant writing and research services to support efforts to secure funding for critical projects and programs that improve the quality of life in local communities.

At RPPG, we strive to live up to the goal of being strong, valued strategic partners for each of our clients. We pride ourselves on being proactive, creative, and nimble, and building strong relationships with staff at each organization that we are honored to work with. RPPG’s Grant Writing Team was launched in June 2021. Since then, we have secured over $116 million for our 21 local government and nonprofit clients.

RPPG’s consultants emphasize submitting high-quality grant applications and deploying a strategic approach to grant-seeking. Our approach is rooted in thorough and thoughtful vetting of funding opportunities for our clients. We examine potential projects through a lens of “grant readiness” to provide clear-eyed assessments and strategic recommendations. Furthermore, we remain committed to providing our clients with accurate and timely information about upcoming funding opportunities. Combining our expertise in grant programs and our team’s presence in Sacramento, we work with our clients to identify and proactively plan for upcoming opportunities for grant programs in advance of the grant competition’s release date.

Our team works diligently to identify and apply for grant opportunities that best fit the needs of our clients. As strategic partners, we work diligently to position our clients for success by thoroughly vetting proposal concepts and projects. In doing so, we strive to offer a comprehensive consulting service—not just writing grants but working with clients in a hands-on way to become “grant ready.”

RPPG’s Grant Writing Services

Proposal Development: RPPG will provide grant writing and proposal development services, from start to finish of the proposal development process. This includes the preparation of funding abstracts, project narratives, and required forms and attachments. At the start of each new project, RPPG’s grants team will convene a kickoff meeting to thoroughly review the grant’s requirements and develop a strategic work plan for the development of a proposal.
Funding Opportunity Research: RPPG conducts continuous and comprehensive research, keeping clients informed of upcoming grant opportunities. Targeted research is available on an “on-call” basis. RPPG clients receive a monthly “Funding Opportunities Catalog” documenting current and cyclical grant programs from federal agencies, state agencies, and private foundations.
Monitoring the State Budget: RPPG’s Director of Grant Services works directly with legislative advocates who provide updates and analysis on the state budget and relevant bills, allowing the grant writing team to proactively identify upcoming opportunities, the creation of new grant programs, and changes to existing grant programs.
Strategic Planning: RPPG works directly with organizational leadership teams to identify funding and service gaps to inform grant-seeking activities. RPPG schedules annual “deep dive” meetings with clients to focus on key priorities for the upcoming year and then uses those priorities to guide the organization’s grant-seeking activities.
Grant Readiness: RPPG’s consultants will support the City’s efforts to proactively identify priority projects and triage potential grant opportunities to support those projects. As part of this effort, RPPG’s consultants will vet projects for competitive viability to support the development of strong grant applications.
Quality Control: Prior to submitting a grant application, RPPG’s grant writer will review the contents of each form, check for typographical or grammatical errors, and ensure that all required components for a complete proposal are included in the application package.
Consistent Communication: RPPG schedules monthly meetings to keep clients informed of upcoming funding opportunities and progress on grant-seeking activities. RPPG’s consultants will be available upon request for meetings with staff related to assigned projects. RPPG’s team regularly sends out “Grant Alerts” to keep clients informed of relevant funding opportunities as they are released, with targeted distribution lists broken down by subject matter area.
Organizational Assessments: Upon request, RPPG’s consultants will work with staff to assess areas to improve grant-seeking efforts, assess past performance, and support the implementation of best practices to support successful efforts.
Capacity Building: Upon request, RPPG will provide professional training for staff to support grant-seeking and grant management activities.

Our Team

	RPPG’s Grant Writing Division is led by Jake Whitaker, Director of Grant Services. With seven years of grant writing experience, he has secured over $80,000,000 in partnership with municipal governments, county governments, institutions of higher education, and non-profits. He prioritizes high quality service, collaboration, and effective communication in all his consulting work. Jake has experience preparing grant proposals across a wide range of sectors, including public safety, wildfire mitigation, housing, parks and recreation, food insecurity department, workforce development, economic development, education, and infrastructure projects (including transportation and water infrastructure).
	With vast experience and a 42-year career in public service that began with his first job as a bus mechanic for the City of Fresno and culminated in his appointment as Fresno’s City Manager in 2013, Bruce Rudd brings a wealth of knowledge to RPPG’s Grant Services Team as a strategic consultant and grant writer. During his career, Bruce has been responsible for writing and/or administering a variety of federal, state, and local grant programs that have been successfully used to fund a variety of capital investment projects, ranging from new parks and trails to the implementation of Bus Rapid Transit services. A marquee accomplishment of his tenure as City Manager was the City of Fresno’s receipt of one of the inaugural Transformative Climate Communities grants.
	Michele has worked as a program manager and consultant for a wide variety of public and private organizations throughout her career. With over 12 years of grant writing experience, Michele has secured millions of dollars across a broad range of disciplines through numerous grant and business development proposals. Michele’s extensive experience encompasses a broad range of public and private sector areas, including land use, public safety, court security, border security, housing, parks and recreation, library services, economic development, education, and infrastructure projects (including transportation and flooding/drainage infrastructure).
	As a professional grant writer and program manager, Maira brings a wealth of experience serving in various roles that focus on the delivery of public service through equity, inclusion, and diversity. She has successfully secured and administered millions of dollars in grant funding from state, federal, and private funding sources. While working with the City of Redlands, Maira spearheaded During her tenure, she spearheaded the development of a successful Project Homekey application that resulted in a record-setting $30 million grant award. Maira’s passion for her work is centered on empowering change makers by securing the funding they need to deliver positive change in their communities.