Social Media can be a useful tool for teachers and educators looking for advice, opinions, and resources. It can also be a great help in identifying funding opportunities and provide guidance for applications, proposals, and how to approach potential funders.

Social Media is versatile and fluent. It touches every aspect of life, including the funding landscape. Platforms are an opportunity to stay informed about new opportunities, connect to fellow educators and grant writers, reach out to funders, and exchange thoughts and ideas.

Research Foundations

Many foundations do have their own twitter, LinkedIn, or Facebook account. They share news about the foundation itself, new funding opportunities, current grant recipients, projects, and give an insight in what the foundation is interested in and what matters to them. This is a great starting point to research potential funders, their priorities, previously funded projects, and how close their mission aligns with your proposal. Examples of popular twitter accounts for funding are @VarkeyFdn, @YouthService, @wwfoundation, or @FundforTeachers.

Reach Out

These platforms are not only a tool to reach out to other grant writers or teachers; you can also make a meaningful connection with a potential funder. Often, social media offers a less formal environment to reach out and inquire about grants. You can interact with a foundation by sharing or liking their tweets, responding to their posts, and mention them on Facebook or other social media. On LinkedIn, you can find employees such as grant or program officers and send any questions you might have to the right person.

Be Up to Date about New Opportunities

Some foundations, especially smaller or local ones, inform about their new grant opportunities on social media, because it reaches an interested audience. These outlets are also helpful to stay informed about possible changes or extensions in deadlines. Websites such as GetEdFunding also post new and upcoming grants and deadlines on Twitter.

Professional Development Opportunities

Social Media is a great platform to grow professional relationships. Twitter offers grant writing and education chat under hash tags such as #edchat, #grantchat, #edtechchat, or #edtech.

Follow Up and Share

If you have received funding, it is always a great idea to share your success and give a shout-out to the funder on social media. You can post pictures of your projects and mention your positive experience with the foundation and the funding process. You might even grab the attention of other funders might be interested in helping you sustain your project.

What are you waiting for? Increase your grant success by leveraging social media and reap the rewards.