Justin J. Bain
PhD Student in Composition and Cultural Rhetoric
Syracuse University
315-443-1412
jjbain@syr.edu
• Philosophy
• Writing 105
• Writing 205
• Writing 307
• Writing 110Case Statements: The Generic Funding Request
The case statement, as a genre, has no set form or requirements, though it contains recurrent features which can be useful in planning to write your own case statement. It is also a highly visual media, meaning that a case statement intended for external use or funding requests can be produced as a word-processing document, a website, a CD/DVD presentation, etc, and can contain charts, graphs, illustrations, and pictures, in addition to the written text. The elements that could and should be included are, of course, part of the rhetorical choices you must make in preparing a case statement for a given audience and purpose.
Generally, a case statement may include the following elements or sections immediately following an introductory narrative:
History The name of your organization
Its founding purpose or mission
Its programs, progress, or successes in meeting the above
Its structure
A direct connection back to the issue of fundingObjectives Who your organization serves or benefits and how
Key needs that are to be met
Plan(s) to meet these needs
Definitions of success and/or assessment toolsSuccess Why success is important and to what constituencies Funding Funding needs and/or plans (short and long term)
Associated projects or purposesDonations Expectations for donors involvement
Who donors should contact or how to give
Benefits of giving for the donorsAside from the elements that make up a case statement, one must also consider the rhetorical purposes of such a document. Generally, a case statement is an argument for support; it makes a case for a particular program or project that is in need of funding. In writing a case statement, you need to consider what needs to be achieved and why this needs to be accomplished. It might be useful to begin by considering your mission statement—or writing one if needed—and why this mission is important. While the importance might be obvious to you, it will likely not be so to those from whom you seek funding. In presenting this mission in your case statement, be sure to follow statements through to their obvious conclusions. For instance, don’t assume that because funding would enable you to build a bigger writing center that others would implicitly understand the effects of such a building.
While it is generally true that a case statement should be highly detailed, the issue of specifying amounts of funding raises some concerns. In all case statements there is a specific dollar amount named, but that is where the similarities end. Some provide itemized lists of programs or projects and their exact costs, others supply general categories for a given project and its estimated cost, while others still provide no information beyond an overall cost. Again, this is a rhetorical choice on your part based on what you know about your potential donors and their desires.
More generally still, case statements are often written as a combination of narrative prose and lists of some sort. They often include illustrations (i.e.—graphs, charts) that will clarify concepts and persuade readers. They tend to avoid passive voice, confusing jargon or discipline-specific terminology, and take on a casual yet professional tone.