June First Firm Grant Writing Services
About Me
With over 10 years of experience in public grant writing, DeaRonda Harrison, Founder of JuneFirst Firm has secured $45M+ in grant awards across housing, healthcare, and education sectors. She brings both expertise and leadership to complex funding initiatives.
Her track record includes a $2M award for The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness and multiple $1M+ housing and healthcare access grants, demonstrating consistent success in securing substantial funding awards.
While you manage existing state and county contracts, billions in new housing initiative funding remain available. The challenge isn’t expertise—it’s capacity.
At JuneFirst Firm, we’ve seen firsthand how complex state portals and overwhelming reporting requirements can derail even the most dedicated grant teams.
Only here’s what no one’s talking about: it’s rarely even a team.
It’s usually one grant writer trying to juggle renewal deadlines, reporting requirements, and prospect research – all while new funding opportunities slip away.
And when that burnout leads to turnover?
The 3-4 month search for a replacement means missing even more opportunities.
- Locate Funders that give to your program and services.
- Prospect Research to identify a pool of grant funders for your nonprofit.
- Create/Review Grant Calendar and sort by deadline and priority.
- Assess the award or decline letters and/or email correspondence from the prior year to ensure following most up to date procedures.
- Make sure funders are aligned with strategic priorities centered on furthering the mission to support programs.
- Evaluate the most recent 990 for recent giving trends and any changes in assets such as a new large infusion of cash.
- Review current funders and pitch new funders to include pitch points that highlight the impact of programs.
- Create compelling case statement or boilerplate language
- Implement strategies and review processes to further develop existing grant making program.
- Examine the funder website (or other online portals) to ensure the deadline, priorities, and other necessary information has not changed.
- Work with program teams on the development of grant application materials, including project metrics/milestones.
- Coordinate all necessary meetings and schedule check ins with Development team to share grant outcomes.
- Review prior year grant proposal and ways to improve.
- Conduct and synthesize complex research for strong needs statement.
- Draft program/project budget in coordination with the finance team.
- Review the funder priorities against the application as part of the editing process and run proposal through editing/spell check software.
- Share with program team/grant contact via document sharing software and update proposal based on feedback.
- Review funder’s application and report requirements.
- Lead brainstorming in coordination with program teams for the proposal/report requirements.
- Draft proposals/reports for review and make the necessary revisions.
- Develop educational materials and hold virtual workshops to assist prospective/existing partners through the grant process.
- Provide grant proposals or reports for the final work product for submission.
- Meet ALL deadlines to ensure timely submission of materials.
- Federal Research and Federal Grant Writing
- Train Development lead
- Fundraising/Communications Plan
- Annual Report Development
MEMBERSHIPS & RECOGNITIONS
Grants Awards We've Secured for Clients
<$500k
- $14,200,000 – Department of Education (Teacher and School Leadership Training)
- $12,000,000 – Department of Education (SEED)
- $5,000,000 – Bezos Day One Fund (housing services)
- $2,000,000 – The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness (rapid rehousing)
- $1,809,274 – Health Resources and Services Administration/HRSA (health care access)
- $1,700,000 – Department of Health and Human Services (health access)
- $1,000,000 – Department of Health and Human Services (health access)
- $800,000 – The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness (housing)
- $500,000 – Charles & Helen Schwab Foundation (K-12 education)
- $500,000 – Charles & Lynn Schusterman Foundation (K-12 education)
- $500,000 – Walton Family Foundation (K-12 education)
- $500,000 – America Achieves Accelerate (K-12 education)
- $500,000 – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (K-12 education)
$101k-$499k
- $370,000 – The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation (community services)
- $350,000 – A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation (leadership professional development)
- $350,000 – Bloomberg Philanthropies (K -12 education)
- $345,000 – Capital One (workforce development and housing)
- $200,000 – W.K. Kellogg Foundation (professional development for teachers)
- $200,000 – Bank of America Neighborhood Builders (capacity building)
- $150,000 – Department of Human Services (health services)
- $150,000 – Department of Human Services (health services)
- $125,000 – TD Charitable Foundation (affordable housing)
- $100,000 – CareFirst (healthcare access)
>$100k
- $100,000 – Department of Employment Services (workforce education)
- $100,000 – CareFirst (healthcare access)
- $100,000 – Department of Employment Services (workforce education)
- $100,000 – WorkSource Montgomery (job training education)
- $100,000 – CareFirst (healthcare access)
- $100,000 – W.K. Kellogg Foundation (summer school sessions)
- $100,000 – Department of Employment Services (workforce education)
- $90,000 – The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation (general operating)
- $90,000 – Helping Children Grow (parenting classes)
- $50,000 – Philip Graham Fund (education)
- $50,000 – Entergy (internet access for virtual learning)
- $50,000 – The Greater Washington Community Foundation (housing and employment)
- $50,000 – The Richard E. and Nancy P. Marriott Family Foundation (workforce education)
- $30,000 – Eugene & Agnes Meyer Foundation (capacity building)
- $30,000 – Delta Dental (dental equipment and charity care)
- $25,000 – Arcana (housing)
- $25,000 – TD Bank (disaster recovery)
$25,000 – AmeriHealth (housing support) - $25,000 – Wells Fargo Foundation (sponsorships, mentoring, and workshops)
- $20,000 – United Way (youth education)
Still not sure if JuneFirst Firm is the right move? Let’s address some common concerns:
When it comes to pursuing new funding opportunities, which 1 sounds most like you?
"We're concerned about investing in grant support during uncertain times."
Solution:
Our success-based approach means we’re invested in identifying viable funding opportunities that align with your mission and capacity.
"Our current grants take all our bandwidth."
Solution:
Our support allows your team to maintain existing funding while we pursue new opportunities.
"The funding landscape keeps changing."
Solution:
Our expertise across multiple funding sources (federal, state, local, and private) helps identify the most stable and appropriate opportunities for your organization.
NOT TO BRAG, BUT HERE’S A
A Small Glimpse of Our Track Record
- $14,200,000 – Department of Education (Teacher and School Leadership Training)
- $12,000,000 – Department of Education (SEED)
- $4,800,000 – State of Maryland (social determinants of health)
- $2,000,000 – The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness (rapid rehousing)
- $1,809,274 – Health Resources and Services Administration/HRSA (health care access)
- $1,700,000 – Department of Health and Human Services (health access)
- $1,000,000 – Department of Health and Human Services (health access)
- $800,000 – The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness (housing)
- $500,000 – Charles & Helen Schwab Foundation (K-12 education)
- $276,000 – Department of Education (21st Century)
- $150,000 – Department of Human Services (health services)
- $100,000 – Department of Employment Services (workforce education)
- $100,000 – WorkSource Montgomery (job training education)
Frequently Asked Questions
What type of nonprofits do you typically work with?
June First Firm typically works with nonprofits with an annual corporate and foundation grant revenue of $250k-$1M+, ready to pursue federal grants. We specialize in serving healthcare and housing nonprofits.
How much does it cost?
Hiring June First Firm for one-time federal grant writing is $18,900 per application. However, if you require ongoing federal grant support, our retainers start at $5,500 per month for 6-12 month contracts. There are no additional or hidden costs.
The awesome benefit to retaining our services is that you are not limited to the number of hours because we do not track hours! That’s right – we focus on deliverables and outcomes.
Why should my nonprofit work with a contractor vs. in-house staff?
Our first recommendation will be to hire an in house grant writer if your nonprofit has the ability to do so. However, nonprofits that retain our grant writing services are looking for professional level expertise with immediate results at a lower cost than hiring in-house staff.
June First Firm has a history of preparing grant applications totaling up to six figures in awards in less than 6 months. June First Firm annual cost for a senior level experienced grant writer and coach/consultant starts at $66,000.
A full time senior level grant professional is $98,946 (Glassdoor, June 2023). Annually, your organization can save over $30,000 hiring June First Firm.
Why should my nonprofit retain a federal grant writer?
Our clients do not have the internal expertise or time to manage the complexity of federal grants, which is where we step in.
We have achieved a 72% win rate in preparing federal grant applications.
Can my nonprofit pay for services from the grant award?
June First Firm does not receive payment for services from the grant award. The most reputable grant professionals will NOT accept payment from the grant award as those funds are designed to fund the project described. Also, June First Firm follows the standards of the Grant Professionals Association Code of Ethics.
How do you work with nonprofits?
June First Firm takes grant writing projects from start to finish to create the needs assessment, project details, objectives, and evaluation etc.
Once the proposal is written, you will receive it for your review. After you make any necessary corrections, a final package is prepared for submission.
Do you help nonprofits apply for private (foundation, corporate) grants?
Yes, we have a history of winning multi-million dollars in corporate, foundation, and private grants.
Our clients experience as much as six figures in awards in less than 6 months versus doing private grants on their own. Check out our private grant writing services here.
How do you research new funding opportunities for nonprofits?
June First Firm uses a multi-pronged approach to conduct a funding landscape analysis to determine the perfect fit for your organization.
Do you provide grant writing services for small businesses?
Currently, we only provide grant writing services for nonprofit organizations. If you are not a 501c3 organization, you can check out Hello Alice for small business grants.
More questions?
If you cannot find an answer to your question, send an email to info [at] junefirstfirm.com.
