Insight Grants

Useful Resource for Grant Seekers: Polar USA Funding & Grants Section

Polar Logo

This year we’ve been working with our long-term partner Polar USA to develop a very useful funding & grants section for grant seekers. If you are a physical educator looking for more information on grants in general, or anyone looking to implement a program with Polar products or services included, you will definitely benefit from this information. Even if you hadn’t thought about including Polar in a grant to this point, the site is worth a visit. The pages include an explanation of how to determine whether you are ready to begin applying for grants–and what to do if you aren’t ready yet, tips for applying for grants, information on Polar products and how they fit into grants and can support grant project success, current grant opportunities you can apply to, research reports of grants that span the full year and beyond, and other helpful content!

Insight is very pleased to have had the opportunity to work with Polar to share our knowledge and experience to create and present this helpful section. We hope that physical educators and other grant seekers will utilize the information now and in the future. Over the years we’ve seen several grant resources offered by many different groups, but the biggest flaw we see is that the information usually isn’t presented in a way that really supports the reader taking the full necessary series of next steps to apply for a grant in a truly competitive manner. For this reason, the Insight team has made it our goal to generate content that is actionable–even for grant seekers who are entirely new to the process. Visit often, as more content will be added throughout the year!

For those unfamiliar with Polar products, Polar makes outstanding heart rate monitors, activity monitors, and activity and fitness assessment tracking and reporting software (including wireless, iPad, and handheld device-friendly options),  in addition to offering high-quality product-related trainings. Polar products give physical educators the ability to assess students individually, efficiently, objectively, and in real time. Polar products have been implemented in countless schools and have played a major role in the drastic improvement of students’ personal fitness levels and increased PE class engagement time and time again. Polar also offers products and services to support individuals, health clubs and gyms, athletes and athletic teams, first responders, worksite wellness programs, and others. To learn more about Polar, see their full line of products, read about successes through their “Showcase Schools” section, and find out how to connect with their sales team, visit Polar.com. To read about products and services specific to your organization type, click on “Group Solutions” and then select the appropriate category: Physical Education, Club Solutions, Team Sports, Corporate Wellness & Health Care Professionals, Protective Services, or Equipment Manufacturers.

Bang for Your Buck: What To Do When Professional Grant Writing Isn’t in the Budget

Professional grant writing can be costly, and while valuable, sometimes organizations simply don’t have enough money in the current budget to support the cost of professional consultants writing and submitting the full grant application. If you find your organization in that position but still feel strongly that you could use and benefit from some professional support, consider grant editing services. While not offered by all consultants, many do offer this or something similar, and Insight certainly offers and often advocates for clients to utilize our editing services!

Insight’s editing service requires applicants to write and submit all parts of the application themselves but also provides clear feedback on any documents the applicant wishes to send for review. While we certainly will do some basic proofreading along the way, this is NOT a proofreading service. Insight editing is aimed at helping the applicant identify exactly where and how the narrative (and other required documents if submitted at the same time) needs to be strengthened in order to stand the best chance of scoring highly and being strongly competitive. We provide specific notes both right in the document and as a summary in the accompanying email that detail what’s missing; what information should be moved or changed; where more detail is needed; and where the need justification, program design, management plan, and/or evaluation design feel weak. Clients can choose to receive a single round of editing or multiple rounds based on the amount of support they feel they need.

We’ve had terrific success with our editing clients, with the vast majority winning their grants, and our editing services come at a bargain rate. Typically, grant editing costs just 10-20% of what the cost would be for us to write the full grant application!

We LOVE writing grants, and we feel our work is super valuable and extremely competitive, but if your organization needs a more budget-friendly option or you have individuals in your organization who already have some grant experience or folks who want to learn to write grants and have the time, editing is a fabulous option for you to consider. If you’re interested in grant editing services, contact us.

Insight Grants