Holly Rustick is an author - and by that merit, well aware of the power of words. As such, the company she founded teaches people how to leverage the specific lexicon of grant applications to secure funding for their non-profit projects. "We're definitely feeling the impact of federal grants," she told KUAM News. "As a lot of programs have been halted, the federal agencies have really been gutted on a lot of levels. A lot of grant programs have been taken off of websites that we normally have seen and been submitting for, and I think right now we're really seeing a reaction to the executive order."

And in today’s government restructuring climate, she’s finding herself using words in conversations to help navigate the future within the landscape of federally-backed grants. Rustick added, "There's so much change going on so quickly, that it's hard to kind of keep up with all of the different change and all of what's going on with grants.

"There's also been pulling down, putting back up and pulling down again, so we're seeing that, as well. So even on the federal agency side, there's a lot of uncertainty on how they're looks like they're rolling it out. So I think right now it's not to say everything's going to go away, but absolutely there will be some change."

So a skill you’ll need to add to your grant profile these days isn’t just being fluent in the language of grant writing, but in managing change. Bottom line: know the new environment and be flexible for variable times.

"We've been looking at saying, okay, what's it going on being able to like these words, you're not able to use any grants anymore, so then providing words that you might be able to use and replacement of that, so helping out as these changes are occurring," she said. "While at the same time some areas that a lot of my students are experiencing is that they're not affected they're going after foundation grants - they're still available. This really isn't affecting their work overall at this point in time. So we're still supporting them."

Also, Rustick says, you’d be wise to combine the traditionally-rigid discipline of grant composition with some creative thinking. So understanding exactly the shifting sands of federal funding is essential, she says.

"Leaning into more foundation grants and private grants and and these types of things is key, so looking at different ways to get funding, as well," she noted. "And just looking at saying, okay, they might be taken down for a while but they'll be coming back up and watching for those to come back, as well. We'll see some of the new language that needs to be used for grants or just the new criteria."

Rustick added, "I think that in 2025 there yes, there's a lot of uncertainty yes there's a lot of changes and we are following that and seeing what happens. But there still are grants available. There are still open grants that won't go away overnight. They are an integral part of our economy, and how we're kind of seeing that roll out too is we're also seeing a lot of government agencies and a lot of non-profits and a lot of Institutions here apply for federal grants.

"So they are very much watching what's going on."