Are you frustrated from receiving turndown notices? Is your brain fried from trying to interpret the rules in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)? Are you tired of sitting in classes and webinars that repeat the same “helpful hints” over and over but provide no substance as to how to actually improve your AFG application? Are you pretty good at AFG applications already and just want to get better? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then come join us for a discussion on real strategies for AFG success. The presenter is NOT a paid grant writer, but simply a fire chief who has been fortunate to fund some amazing projects through the AFG programs. Additionally, the presenter has been an AFG peer reviewer since 2016. This course is not going to waste your time with making sure your name is spelled correctly and walking through the steps to obtain a DUNS number and SAM registration. Those things are important, but that information is easily obtained with a web search. What we will do in class is dive deep into data collection and presentation. Instead of telling you to just “tell your story,” we will go over how to tell your story using the data you have collected within the parameters of the grant rules and with the added perspective of someone who reads and scores these stories. We will spend a significant amount of time determining what constitutes Strongly Agree, Agree, Neither Agree nor Disagree, Disagree, and Strongly Disagree in the four main narrative categories of Financial Need, Project Description, Cost/Benefit, and Statement of Effect. Additionally, we will examine other areas of the application that may not technically be scored in peer review, but that sets your application up for success through professional appearance, computer score justification, and flow when read by a peer reviewer. If you are ready for a down-and-dirty grant writing class that is specific to the AFG program and that will provide you with real substance to take back to your department, bring your pen and notepad! You don't want to miss this session!