The letter
Ms. Alicia Grant Program Officer, Education Harbor Bend Community Foundation
Re: Summer Reading Initiative, request for $42,262
Dear Ms. Grant,
On behalf of Harbor Bend Reads, I am pleased to submit the enclosed proposal requesting $42,262 over 12 months to support the Summer Reading Initiative. With your support, 150 students in grades 2–5 at three Harbor Bend elementary schools will spend next summer gaining reading levels instead of losing them.
The Foundation’s commitment to “every child reading by third grade” is why we are reaching out, and it was helpful to talk through the project with you at the June education convening.
Fifty-eight percent of third graders in our district read below grade level, and at the three schools in this project the figure is 67%. Four trained reading coaches will tutor small groups four mornings a week through the summer and twice a week during the school year, and six family reading nights will help parents keep reading going at home.
Last year, 68% of students in our in-school tutoring gained at least one reading level. The total project cost is $69,822: the school district is donating classroom space, a community tech fund is providing assessment tablets, and our general operating funds cover the rest.
Thank you for considering this request. Dana Morales, our Program Director, can answer any questions at dana@harborbendreads.example or 555-0110, and we would welcome you at a summer session.
Sincerely, Jamie Chen Executive Director, Harbor Bend Reads
Enclosures: Proposal, budget and budget narrative, attachments
- The first paragraph answers the only questions a busy reader has: who, how much, for what, and the result.
- It quotes the funder’s own priority and mentions a real conversation, so it can’t be mistaken for a form letter.
- The need gets two sentences and one comparison; the full case is in the proposal.
- Naming the other funders shows the request is part of a funded whole, not the whole budget.