Lightning Talk: From Funding to Impact: A Grantmaker’s Perspective

Thursday, November 5, 2026 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. ET
FREE, open to everyone

Where can organizations find funding, and what makes a funder take notice? Griffen Stapp, Executive Director of Ability Central and the California Communications Access Foundation (CCAF), explores how to identify funding opportunities, avoid common grant application pitfalls, and make a compelling case through clear priorities, authentic stories, and evidence of impact. We’ll examine the patterns shared by organizations making a lasting difference from listening to the communities they serve to building strong partnerships and discuss how to sustain that work amid changing federal disability policy and shifting funding priorities. We’ll also consider how AI is changing grant submissions, where generic “AI slop” weakens an application, and how organizations can use these tools while preserving the specificity, credibility, and human voice that help them stand out.

Griffen Stapp is the Executive Director of Ability Central and the California Communications Access Foundation (CCAF). He has more than 20 years of experience in finance, operations, and organizational strategy across nonprofit, healthcare, biomedical, and technology-focused organizations. His background includes executive leadership, operational consulting, and organizational management across multiple industries. He has served on nonprofit boards for more than 20 years in disability services and has taught college-level courses for over 10 years.  He has developed and exited a number of disability technology companies, while sitting on VC's and equity companies in the medical and biotech space.

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Lightning Talks are concise virtual presentations by experts (15 minutes or less) followed by a live Q&A session. 

Automatically generated captions provided for this webinar. ASL and Live CART are available upon request when registering. For more information or to request other access services, please contact the Office of Accessibility and VSA at (202) 416-8898 (voice) or [email protected].