Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 2

Writing the Project Narrative, Project Objectives, and Performance Measures

Introduction

Deconstructing the Grant and Aligning Your Proposal’s Objectives and Performance Measures with the Grant’s Priorities and Expected Outcomes. This is the most important part of the grant-writing process and your grant proposal. Before writing, you must deeply understand what the Department of Education wants to fund. By analyzing the grant’s priorities and scoring rubric (the Selection Criteria), you can design a project that directly meets their goals and maximizes your potential score.

NOTE. Many of the activities below will be completed by your Grant Writer based on the strategic directions and activities suggested by the Grant Leadership Team for inclusion in the district’s proposal.

These actions correspond to Parts 3, 4, and 5 of the formal application.

Application Part 5—Project Narrative Attachment Form

 Application Narrative

Application Part 4—Project Narrative

 (Includes the Project Objectives and Performance Measures)

Application Part 3—ED Abstract Form

 Project Abstract

Step-by-Step Directions

1. Internalize the Grant’s Purpose and Priorities (as of October, 2025)

Action 1: Read and Annotate the Core Grant Documents.

After reading the relevant, functional parts of the Grant RFP and Application Packet, the Grant Leadership Team should read and discuss the Purpose of the Grant Program, Absolute Priorities, Competitive Preference Priorities, and Definitions together as a team.

Eligible Applicants: State educational agencies (SEAs), as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(49), local educational agencies (LEAs), as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(30), and consortia of LEAs.

Purpose: The SBMH program provides competitive grants to State educational agencies (SEAs)(as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(49)), local educational agencies (LEAs) (as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(30)), and consortia of LEAs to increase the number of credentialed school-based mental health services providers delivering mental health services to students in high-need LEAs.

Key Definitions to Discuss: The definitions of “credentialed,” “early intervention mental health services,” “high-need LEA,” “intensive mental health services,” “recruit or recruitment,” “respecialization,” “retain or retention,” and “telehealth” are from the NFP published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register. The definitions of “local educational agency” and “State educational agency are from 20 U.S.C. 7801.

[Grant Proposal Designated Definitions 10 8 25.pdf]

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Action 2: Review/Discuss How the District/Consortium Meets the Grant Priorities.

For LEAs, the project must meet Priority 2 and Priority 3. You will need to prove how the District or Consortium qualifies for these in your narrative. There also is a Competitive Preference Priority 2 for LEAs which offers an opportunity for 3 Bonus points (increasing the total available points to 103).

Priority 2—LEAs proposing to increase the number of credentialed school psychologists employed in high-need LEAs. To meet this priority, a high-need LEA or a consortium of high-need LEAs must propose a plan to recruit and retain credentialed school psychologists for employment in high-need LEAs.

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Priority 3—SEAs or LEAs increasing the number of credentialed school psychologists delivering early intervention and intensive mental health services in high-need LEAs. To meet this priority, applicants must propose to increase the number of credentialed school psychologists who will engage in the following:

(a) Providing intensive mental health services and supports to individual students most in need of those services,

(b) Providing early intervention mental health services to address acute concerns and determine if intensive mental health services are needed, and

(c) Building necessary capacity and local support to ensure the provision of intensive mental health services beyond the life of the grant.

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Competitive Preference Priority 2— Rural Applicants. (0 or 3 points). Under this priority, an applicant must demonstrate the following:

(a) The applicant proposes to serve a community that is served by one or more LEAs—

(i) With a National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) locale code of 32, 33, 41, 42, or 43; or

(ii) With a NCES locale code of 41, 42, or 43.

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Action 3: Review/Discuss How the District/Consortium Meets the Additional Application and Program Requirements.

Per the SBMH Grant published in the September 29, 2025 Federal Register, the following Application and Program Requirements have been set and must be embedded in (largely) the Project Narrative:

Application Requirements

Application requirement (a) applies to SEAs only; and application requirement (b) applies to LEAs only. Application requirement (c) applies to all applicants.

(a) SEA applicants must identify in their applications the specific high-need LEAs that will benefit from the grant or how they will identify and select the high-need LEAs designated to benefit from the grant.

(b) LEA applicants must describe how they and each LEA in the consortium, if applicable, meets the definition of high-need LEA.

(c) Applicants must include in their applications the most recently available data on the number of credentialed school psychologists delivering services in the high-need LEA(s) and the projected number of credentialed school psychologists that will be hired and retained to deliver services in high-need LEA(s) for each year of the project using funds from this grant.

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Proposed Program Requirements

(a) Eligible Applicants for this program are one or both of SEAs, as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(49), or LEAs, as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(30), including consortia of LEAs.

(b) Administrative costs for SEA applicants that receive an award under this program may not exceed 10 percent of the annual grant award. Administrative costs for LEA applicants that receive an award under this program may not exceed 5 percent of the annual grant award.

(c) Applicants that receive an award under this program must use grant funds to supplement, and not supplant, non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for activities funded under this program.

(d) Applicants that receive an award under this program are prohibited from using program funds for: (1) gender ideology, (2) political activism, (3) racial stereotyping, or (4) hostile environments for students of particular races.

(e) Applicants that receive an award under this program must ensure that school psychologists funded by this grant begin delivering services to students as soon as possible, but not later than 270 days from award.

(f) Applicants that receive an award under this program must ensure that any school psychologist hired under this grant, including any services provider that offers telehealth services (as defined in this notice), is credentialed to work in an elementary school (as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(19)) or secondary school (as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(45)).

(g) Applicants that receive an award under the program must comply with section 4001(a) of part A of Title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA). In carrying out the Informed Written Consent requirements described in paragraph (a)(1), the exception in (a)(2)(B)(i) only applies after the applicant has made multiple repeated attempts through various communication methods to obtain parent consent. Subsequently, where parent consent is not obtained under (a)(2), not including the provisions in (B)(ii), the parent of a child participating in such services will be provided notice of initial and subsequent service delivery.

(h) Applicants that receive an award under this program must ensure that any school psychologist offering services (including telehealth services) does so in a manner consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as all other applicable Federal, State, and local laws.

2. Aligning Your Grant Narrative to the Selection Criteria (Part 4)

Action 1: Print the Organization of the Narrative, the Points Assigned to Each Section, and the Scoring Criteria.

A completed application will include a Program Narrative. The Program Narrative is the section of the Application that directly describes the required elements of the proposal and responds to the selection criteria. The Program Narrative should follow the exact organization specified in the RFP and the order of the selection criteria in each section. Applicants should also describe, in detail, activities planned for each of the funding periods of the grant.

A minimum of 3 peer reviewers assigned and trained by the U.S. Department of Education will evaluate each proposal. Reviewers will review the applicants’ responses to each criterion and score each of their assigned proposals independently using a scoring rubric that parallels the narrative organization and criteria specified in the RFP. The entire Narrative must conform to the specified organization, and all scoring criteria need to be addressed in the order outlined in the RFP. Not responding to a specific grant requirement or criterion will negatively impact the score of an Applicant’s proposal.

If there are significant discrepancies among the three reviewers, the Program Office is supposed to convene the reviewing team, discuss the scoring criteria again, and ask the reviewers to independent re-review the proposal in question.

The RFP is recommending that applicants limit the program narrative to 15 pages. If “suggested,” this limit does not need to be attended to. If “required,” any proposal exceeding the page number—at the beginning of the review process—will not be scored. The RFP also specifies the margins and the fonts and font sizes that must be used. Narrative attachments must be submitted as files in a read-only, flattened Portable Document Format (PDF) or as a Microsoft Word document. If applicants upload a different file type or submit a password- protected file, this material will not be reviewed.

As above, past applications have typically used the following format requirements:
- A “page” is 8.5″ x 11″, on one side only, with 1″ margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
- Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings, footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in charts, tables, figures, and graphs. [NOTE: We have received permission in the past to single-space tables.]
- Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller than 10-pitch (characters per inch).
- Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier, Courier New, or Arial.
- After the Grant recipients are announced, all applicants will receive the Scoring Sheets from all three reviewers and their specific comments on why/how they scored each section of the Grant Narrative.

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Action 2: Analyze the Point Values.

Note the points assigned to each criterion. Note that, historically, most successful grant proposals receive scores of 95 points or more out of 100 points. Implication: EVERY point counts.

From the Federal Register Grant Announcement:

(a) Need for the Project: (Up to 20 points)

(b) Quality of the Project Design: (Up to 30 points)

(d) Quality of the management plan. (Up to 20 points)

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Action 3: Create Your Narrative Outline.

Use the selection criteria as the main headings for your Project Narrative document. This ensures you address every required component. Non-Federal peer reviewers will evaluate and score each application program narrative against the following selection criteria:

(a) Need for the Project: (Up to 20 points)

The Secretary considers the need for the proposed project.

(1) In determining the need for the proposed project, the Secretary considers the extent to which the specific nature and magnitude of gaps or challenges are identified and the extent to which these gaps or challenges will be addressed by the services, supports, infrastructure, or opportunities described in the proposed project.

(b) Quality of the Project Design: (Up to 30 points)

The Secretary considers the quality of the design of the proposed project. In determining the quality of the design of the proposed project, the Secretary considers one or more of the following factors:

(i) The extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified, measurable, and ambitious yet achievable within the project period, and aligned with the purposes of the grant program. (Up to 20 points)

(ii) The extent to which the proposed project demonstrates that it is designed to build capacity and yield sustainable results that will extend beyond the project period. (Up to 10 points)

The Secretary considers the adequacy of resources for the proposed project. In determining the adequacy of resources for the proposed project, the Secretary considers one or more of the following factors:

(i) The extent to which the budget is adequate to support the proposed project and the costs are reasonable in relation to the objectives, design, and potential significance of the proposed project. (Up to 20 points)

(ii) The extent to which the costs are reasonable in relation to the number of persons to be served, the depth and intensity of services, and the anticipated results and benefits. (Up to 10 points)

(d) Quality of the management plan. (Up to 20 points)

The Secretary considers the quality of the management plan for the proposed project. In determining the quality of the management plan for the proposed project, the Secretary considers one or more of the following factors:

(i) The feasibility of the management plan to achieve project objectives and goals on time and within budget, including clearly defined responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing project tasks. (Up to 10 points)

(ii) The extent to which the time commitments of the project director and principal investigator and other key project personnel are appropriate and adequate to meet the objectives of the proposed project. (Up to 10 points)

3. Integrating Your Project Objectives and Performance Measures into the Narrative—Telling Your Story and Defining Success

The Project Objectives (Part 5) are your contract for success, defining precisely what you will accomplish. These two parts must be perfectly aligned.

Step-by-Step Directions

Action 1: Identify Your Main Goals.

As you develop your Project Narrative, determine the major goals and objectives of your project (e.g., Hire new staff, Provide retention incentives, Train existing staff), and make sure that the Performance Measures are fully addressed and planned for.

The Performance Measures for this Grant Program are:

(a) The unduplicated, cumulative number of new school psychologists hired for each high-need LEA as a result of the grant.

(b) The unduplicated, cumulative number of school psychologists retained in high-need LEAs as a result of the grant.

(c) The ratio of students to school psychologist for each high-need LEA served by the grant, and the numbers of school psychologists and students used to calculate the ratio.

These measures constitute the Department’s indicators of success for this program. Consequently, we advise an applicant for a grant under this program to give careful consideration to these measures in conceptualizing the approach for its proposed project plan. Each grantee will be required to provide, in its annual performance and final reports, data about its progress in meeting these measures.

Performance measure targets: The applicant must propose annual targets for the measures listed above in their application. Applicants must also provide the following information as directed under 34 CFR 75.110(b) and (c):

(1) An explanation of how each proposed performance target is ambitious (as defined in this notice) yet achievable compared to the baseline (as defined in this notice) for the performance measure.

(2) An explanation of the data collection and reporting methods the applicant would use and why those methods are likely to yield reliable, valid, and meaningful performance data.

(3) An explanation of the applicant’s capacity to collect and report reliable, valid, and meaningful performance data, as evidenced by high-quality data collection, analysis, and reporting in other projects or research.

Note: If the applicant does not have experience with collection and reporting of performance data through other projects or research, the applicant should provide other evidence of capacity to successfully carry out data collection and reporting for its proposed project.

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Action 2: Convert Goals into SMART Objectives.

For each goal, write one or more SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) objectives.

Example Goal: Hire more school psychologists.
Example SMART Objective: “By September 30, 20XX, the LEA will hire and onboard three new fully-credentialed, bilingual school psychologists.”

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Action 3: Define Performance Measures for Each Objective.

For each objective, determine how you’ll measure progress. You will enter these into the ED Performance Measure Form within the Grants.gov application package.

From the Application: “For each project objective, enter each associated quantitative and/or qualitative performance measure… There may be multiple… measures associated with each project objective.”

Example Measures for the objective above: “(Quantitative) Number of new bilingual school psychologists hired;” “(Qualitative) Copies of employment contracts and credentials for new hires.”

4. Writing the Grant Abstract Using the ED Abstract Form (Part 3)

This section should be attached as a single document to the ED Abstract Form in accordance with the instructions found on Grants.gov. Ensure that you only attach the Education approved file types detailed in the Federal Register application notice. Also, do not upload any password-protected files to your application.

When attaching files, applicants should limit the size of their file names. Lengthy file names could result in difficulties with opening and processing your application. We recommend your file names be less than 50 characters. Please note that Grants.gov cannot process an application that includes two or more files that have the same name within a grant submission.

Step-by-Step Directions

Action 1: Project Abstract Form.

Part 3: ED Abstract Form. Ensure that you only attach the Education approved file types detailed in the Federal Register application notice. Also, do not upload any password-protected files to your application. Please note that Grants.gov cannot process an application that includes two or more files that have the same name within a grant submission. When attaching files, applicants should limit the size of their file names. Lengthy file names could result in difficulties with opening and processing your application. The Department recommends your file names be less than 50 characters.

An applicant must clearly identify in the project abstract (and the project narrative section of its application) the competitive preference priority or priorities it wishes the Department to consider for purposes of earning competitive preference priority points.

Links to the Pages of this Website

SBMH Grant Writing Home Page

Activities and Timelines Before the Request for Proposals (RFP) is Published

Activities and Timelines Once the Request for Proposals is Published

Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 1

Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 2

Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 3

Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 4

Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 5

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Writing and Submitting the Grant Proposal—Section 2