Logic Model Template for Nonprofits (With a Filled-In Example)

Every funder that wants a logic model wants the same thing: proof that you have thought through how the money you're asking for produces the change you're promising. Most rejected proposals have a logic model that reads like a to-do list.

The four-column template

Inputs — resources: staff time, funding, curriculum, partners, facilities.
Activities — what those resources enable you to do: tutoring sessions, meals served, workshops.
Outputs — countable results: sessions delivered, participants served, materials distributed.
Outcomes — the changes in knowledge, behavior, or condition. Split into short-term (3–6 mo), mid-term (12 mo), long-term (2–5 yrs).

Filled-in example: youth literacy program

Program: After-school one-on-one reading tutoring for 3rd-graders reading below grade level.

Inputs

• 1.0 FTE Program Coordinator + 1 part-time Reading Specialist
• 32 trained volunteer tutors (60 hours training each)
• Wilson Reading System curriculum (site license)
• Partnership with 4 elementary schools in South Bend district
• $95,000 program budget

Activities

• Recruit and match 96 3rd-graders with trained tutors
• Deliver two 45-minute tutoring sessions per week, 30 weeks per school year
• Administer STAR Reading assessments at intake, mid-year, and end-of-year
• Hold monthly family literacy nights at each school
• Provide monthly coaching to volunteer tutors

Outputs

• 96 students enrolled
• 5,760 tutoring sessions delivered (96 × 60 sessions)
• 288 STAR assessments administered
• 32 family literacy nights held

Short-term outcomes (by June 2027)

• 80% of enrolled students demonstrate a one-grade-level gain on STAR Reading
• 90% of families report increased at-home reading time on the follow-up survey
• 85% of volunteer tutors return for a second year

Mid-term outcomes (by June 2028)

• 75% of program alumni score proficient or above on the 4th-grade IREAD-3 state literacy assessment

Long-term outcomes (by 2030)

• Program alumni matriculate to middle school on grade level in reading at rates equal to or above the district average

Rules that separate strong logic models from weak ones

1. Outcomes are changes, not activities. "Deliver 5,760 sessions" is an output. "80% of students gain a grade level" is an outcome.
2. Every outcome has a measurement source. If you can't say how you'll measure it, delete it.
3. Outputs and outcomes are proportional. Serving 96 students should not produce a district-wide systems-change long-term outcome.
4. Assumptions are named. Add one line: "This model assumes consistent tutor attendance and continued school-partnership access."

Draft yours faster

GrantDraft generates a first-pass logic model from your program description and pulls it into your proposal's Goals & Outcomes section. Try it free →