KNOXVILLE — Entrepreneurs who want to win federal grant money for new business projects should plan to attend two separate workshops on grant writing and cost proposals Sept. 10-11 in Chattanooga and Oak Ridge.
Both workshops are being offered by the Tennessee Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Proposal Assistance Center at the UT Center for Industrial Services. The workshops will be led by Jim and Gail Greenwood, nationally recognized consultants who have shared their expertise in SBIR and small business incubators for decades in 48 states and Puerto Rico.
The SBIR and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are federal initiatives that provide more than $2 billion in grants and contracts each year to small and start-up companies to develop new or enhanced products and services based on advanced technologies.
“Each year, about 40 percent of SBIR Phase I awards go to firms with no prior SBIR experience, so there are plenty of opportunities to win funding,” Jim Greenwood said.
The Tennessee SBIR Proposal Assistance Center is designed to help increase the volume of applicants from Tennessee and to boost the success of proposals from Tennessee entrepreneurs and small businesses.
A grant writing workshop will be offered Sept. 10 in Chattanooga at the Tennessee Small Business Development Center, 100 Cherokee Blvd. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. The workshop is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Geared toward individuals with small, technology-based businesses, this workshop emphasizes correct writing methods and proper responses to government agency requirements. Participants will learn the basics of preparing a competitive Phase I proposal and will get an overview of basic government accounting principles. Much is learned by critiquing an actual proposal with the Greenwoods during the workshop. Participants also get an appointment for a complimentary critique of their own proposal with the Greenwoods.
A cost proposal workshop will be offered Sept. 11 in Oak Ridge at UT’s Glazer Building, 1201 Oak Ridge Turnpike. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. The workshop is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Participants in the cost proposal workshop will learn to make sense of SBIR/STTR cost proposals; how to develop an Indirect/Facilities and Administrative/General and Administrative rate; how to fill record-keeping requirements; and what to expect from government audits.
Registration for each workshop is $150 and includes continental breakfast and a networking lunch. Online registration for either workshop is available at www.tnsbir.tennessee.edu. For more information, contact Kim Arms at kim.arms@tennessee.edu.
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Jim and Gail Greenwood
In 1996, the Greenwoods received a prestigious Tibbetts Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration for their contributions in SBIR counseling and training.
They have been acknowledged by Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories for their contributions to the SBIR program. The Greenwoods helped develop and then managed for 11 years the Los Alamos Small Business Center, one of the first incubators in the southwestern U.S.
The Greenwoods are regular instructors of proposal preparation workshops, and more than 90 percent of workshop attendees say the Greenwoods’ instruction improved their ability to compete for SBIR and STTR awards. One region surveyed its SBIR/STTR competitors after similar workshops and learned that their proposal success rate was almost 50 percent, compared to about 17 percent nationally.
The Greenwoods have served as reviewers for the U.S. Army’s Quality Awards, which recognize SBIR/STTR projects with the greatest commercial (private or military) potential.
Jim Greenwood has served as a commercialization reviewer for Phase I and II SBIR/STTR proposals at the National Science Foundation.
Gail Greenwood has served as a statewide coordinator and board member on the Project SBIR West Regional Council.
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Contacts:
Queena Jones, (865) 974-1533, queena.jones@tennessee.edu