Debbie Hershey Guren, President of Montessori Development Partnerships, hired Grants Plus to identify potential grant funders and provide strategic guidance for a $6.23 million capital campaign to establish Cleveland’s first Montessori charter school.
The first priority was to find potential funders for the campaign. Grants Plus conducted a signature Grants Plus Funding Scan to investigate and recommend prospective corporate and foundation prospects.
Once prospects were identified, Grants Plus senior consultant Emily Malloy launched a regular schedule of bi-weekly strategy meetings. Through discussion and decision making about each prospect, Emily helped translate research results into action. “Emily is awesome,” Debbie says. “She is always doing additional background research on new potential donors and helping us plan approach strategies that really work.”
Three years later, the campaign has nearly reached its goal and the new school is open. Stonebrook Montessori provides an exceptional education option for elementary-aged children in one Cleveland’s most challenged neighborhoods. Countless funders were engaged in the campaign and are now invested in the school’s long-term success. +
