Something is changing in grants.
AI has dramatically reduced the time required to produce an application. Nonprofits can identify and pursue more opportunities than ever before. At the same time, government funding is shifting, competition is increasing, funders are overwhelmed with applications, and many of the old assumptions about how organizations find and win grants no longer fit the world development professionals are working in.
So, what is actually going on?
Drawing on more than 15 years of grant strategy experience, Matt Leighty will examine the forces reshaping the grant landscape—and what they mean for fundraising professionals. Rather than focusing on how to write a better proposal, this session looks upstream at the decisions that determine whether an organization should be pursuing an opportunity in the first place.
Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how the grant environment is changing and a practical framework for making better decisions about where to invest their organization's limited time and capacity.
By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
- Identify major forces reshaping the grant landscape, including AI, increased application volume, changing government funding, and growing competition.
- Distinguish between grant-writing efficiency and grant strategy—and understand why producing more applications does not necessarily produce more funding.
- Evaluate grant opportunities based on organizational fit, funder behavior, likelihood of success, and the true cost of pursuing an award.
- Recognize where AI can improve grant work and where human judgment, relationships, and institutional knowledge remain essential.
- Apply a more strategic approach to deciding which grants to pursue, which to decline, and where development staff can create the greatest value.
Pending approval for CFRE credit.
Our Presenter
Matt Leighty is the Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of GrantFlow, a Richmond-based grant strategy firm that helps nonprofits build more effective and sustainable grant programs. Over more than 15 years in the field, Matt has worked across health and human services, education, workforce development, arts and culture, and other sectors, helping organizations navigate an increasingly complex funding landscape.
His work focuses not simply on writing better grants, but on understanding how grants actually work: how funders make decisions, why strong organizations sometimes struggle to secure funding, and how nonprofits can spend less time chasing opportunities and more time building community and advancing their missions.
Our Schedule
- 11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
- 12 p.m. Lunch begins
- 12:10 p.m. Program begins
- 1:30 p.m. Session concludes, Adjourn
Registration Fees
- Virtual registration is $10 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.
- In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.
If you are not a VAFRE member and do nor work in the office of a VAFRE member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.
