Testimonials

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Many school districts in Illinois have been grossly underfunded by the state to just meet the essential instructional needs of the students let alone for those districts to try and provide additional and value-added opportunities.  The districts that relied on state funding the most were also the districts in which the students had the greatest needs and in communities without the local resources close the gap.

For Rochelle Elementary School District, using the services and expertise of Linda Spangrud as a grant-writing consultant to help address this financial need to provide for our students was one of the best and most impactful decisions we made.  Over the years the district was able to be awarded over a million dollars in competitive grants.  These additional resources not only help support our instructional aims but also provided additional experiential opportunities for our students.  

Linda is not just an excellent grant writer, but a truly invested educator at heart.  A large part of her effectiveness is the relationships developed with the people in our district because she  sincerely cared about us, our mission, and our students.  I would highly  recommend her services and am extremely grateful for her interest and work in our district. 

 When I met Linda Spangrud in 2014, I only had a rough vision for how I  hoped to improve my classroom, school, and community. I had never  attempted to write a grant or engage in any large scale publicity  projects.

 After partnering with Linda, we went on to be awarded 4 grants  over the next three years totaling more than $235,000! That even  included one project that required a national publicity campaign to  generate votes via social media. Linda's seemingly limitless energy,  attention to detail, ability to problem solve, and tenacity for project  completion were exactly what we needed to focus our foggy vision into  something viable and effective. Working with her has stretched me as an  educator and empowered my school district to reach incredible new  heights 

 I have known Linda Spangrud for 14 years. She came into our South Baldwin Chamber world with interest in our South Baldwin Chamber Foundation and our lives have not been the same since…in a very good way!

Linda has knowledge, drive, and determination like few others I’ve met. She is an excellent grant writer, tremendous friend of education and has a heart and passion for helping communities flourish. 

The percentage of grants she writes for which she receives funding, in my opinion, puts her at the top of the best grant writers in the country. She is well connected throughout the country and really all over the world. I have been in the Chamber of Commerce world for thirty-five years and believe me when I tell you she is excellent at building lasting relationships. 

I am proud to have the Spangrud’s in our south Baldwin County Alabama community and proud to call her my friend. 

It is with pleasure and confidence that I recommend Spangrud & Associates as grant writers. My recommendation is based on my firsthand observations over many years as a School Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent in three school districts and as the Executive Director of a Museum of Natural History. Based on my positive experiences, her extensive knowledge of the grant writing process, and our rate of success in obtaining state and federal grants, I believe Ms. Spangrud is an excellent choice for any school district or non-for-profit organization in need of an exceptional grant writer.

Ms. Spangrud’s success led to the expansion of grant writing initiatives in two school districts where I served as a district administrator. I found her to be an accomplished and skillful educator and leader who promoted effective change through grant writing opportunities that were beneficial to the school districts and the museum. She is a remarkable lady, who consistently demonstrated a willingness to support the district administration and staff with an unfailing passion and determination to develop new initiatives that led to improved quality educational programs for our community. Linda always exhibited effective interpersonal skills combined with a commitment to complete the grant writing task with thoroughness.

 Linda Spangrud provided exceptional grant writing support while I was the school superintendent at Meridian CUSD #223 (Stillman Valley, IL) and Carterville CUSD #5 (Carterville, IL). Due to Linda’s high-quality work, both districts were successful in winning the coveted Federal Elementary Counseling grant (over $1 million each). Additionally, she provided high-level technical support in the execution of those grants. Beyond that, Linda was responsible for winning numerous other grants that supported and advanced our district improvement initiatives. Besides having immense technical knowledge of grant writing, 

Linda is the most passionate advocate for students that I know. She is a tireless worker and highly professional. Don’t pass up the opportunity to have her positively impact your organization!

I have had the distinct pleasure of working with Spangrud & Associates for 14 years in my position as Executive Director of the South Baldwin Chamber Foundation and the Baldwin County Education Coalition. 

Critical to our success as a charitable nonprofit and our work of mobilizing resources to increase the level of support for our public schools is securing grant opportunities. Spangrud & Associates brings years of experience and knowledge in grant writing and program development. They are experts in their field and a great resource to anyone seeking grants revenue to support their organization. Over the years, they have helped our organization secure 80% of grant applications submitted.

On a personal level, Linda has served as a mentor and advisor and provided me with training, knowledge and confidence to write and acquire grants for our organization. She makes herself available and is quick to respond and provide feedback or direction when needed. 

The Spangrud’s are very engaged and hold a genuine concern and desire for the success of our community and every child. This letter comes with my highest recommendation. I have not worked with a better grant writing team. 

I have known Linda B. Spangrud for over twenty years and have worked closely with her in two different school districts. In each district she was the Director of Grants and I was the person responsible for financial oversight of the grant budgets. 

Ms. Spangrud always maintained the highest degree of fiscal integrity. Her budgets were well thought out, detailed, and accurate. Once the grants were awarded Linda monitored all budget managers to ensure expenditures were spent on time and within budget. She also ensured that all grant recipients followed all rules and regulations required by the funding organization. I could count on Linda to be prepared for all financial audits because her budget documentation was always very precise and thorough. 

Linda was instrumental in spearheading a grant monitoring system. With over 200 grants acquired for each district it is important to have a consistent monitoring process. She worked collaboratively and diligently with the Business Services Department to design and compile a grant implementation manual. This manual laid out the necessary guidelines, procedures, forms, and paperwork needed to implement grant programs. Training seminars were held to assist grant project coordinators and grant budget managers to learn procedures. Linda was also instrumental in developing sample contracts to be used with vendors and consultants. 

Linda was able to secure extensive partnerships within the community, region, state, and nation for various grant programs. These partnerships were vital in securing the many large grants the districts were awarded. Linda’s ability to bring people together is one of her greatest talents. This is of the utmost importance in sustaining grant programs. 

Linda knows the grant business and has an unusually high percent of success rate (over 90%) in both districts that I have worked with her. She is energetic, knowledgeable, and most importantly, passionate about grants and what they can provide an organization. It is without reservation that I recommend Linda as a consultant for your grant project.

Critical to our success as a charitable nonprofit and our work of mobilizing resources to increase the level of support for our public schools is securing grant opportunities. Spangrud & Associates brings years of experience and knowledge in grant writing and program development. They are experts in their field and a great resource to anyone seeking grants revenue to support their organization. Over the years, they have helped our organization secure 80% of grant applications submitted.

On a personal level, Linda has served as a mentor and advisor and provided me with training, knowledge and confidence to write and acquire grants for our organization. She makes herself available and is quick to respond and provide feedback or direction when needed. 

The Spangrud’s are very engaged and hold a genuine concern and desire for the success of our community and every child. This letter comes with my highest recommendation. I have not worked with a better grant writing team.