> I'm a grant writer, with experience working in museums and schools as an
> educator. I'd like to parlay my grant writing skills into a half time
> educator/grantwriting position. Is this sort of thing commonly done?

I had a position that was half grants management and half education -
directing two major programs. While it seemed logical that grants and
education should fit together (and I had extensive experience in both), the
combination did not work well. Part of the problem was probably that these
had been two full time positions which were combined, without really cutting
anything from the agenda. The other issue was that both education programs
and grants development require intensive support around fixed deadlines.
While you can plan your education programs to mitigate this a bit, when
grants are due, they take over.

On the other hand, one of the most difficult challenges for grant managers
is to know what is planned and how current programs evolve. When you are
also running the program, you have a very good sense of what is coming on
the horizon and you can sometimes spot funding opportunities that might not
be obvious to someone in another department.

In any case, it is highly beneficial to any organization to have experienced
grant writers in program/project positions. When program/project staff are
great at articulating what they are doing for funders and other
stakeholders, development staff can spend more time soliciting and less time
writing and interpreting.

Good luck!

Susan B.F. Wageman
Senior Director, Evaluation, Planning & Research
The Tech Museum of Innovation     [log in to unmask]
201 S Market St                   408-795-6303
San Jose, CA  95113               fax 408-279-7167
http://www.thetech.org/

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