Sponsored Project Training Program Introduction to Sponsored Projects Jennifer Gagnon, Nick Brightman & Sudha Ramaswami September 12, 2012
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Sponsored Project Training Program Introduction to Sponsored Projects Jennifer Gagnon, Nick Brightman & Sudha Ramaswami September 12, 2012 1 Introduction to Sponsored Projects This session will provide an overview of the grant life cycle from searching for funding to grant closeout. Participants will learn the roles and responsibilities for all individuals involved in the grant life cycle. Sponsored Project Training Program Learning Objectives Participants will: ◦ Receive an overview of Sponsored Project Administration ◦ Learn about the grant lifecycle ◦ Understand the roles and responsibilities of investigators, chairs and deans, and central units, in addition to how they as business unit administrators fit in ◦ Know where to go for help and become aware of future learning opportunities Sponsored Project Training Program What is a sponsored project? Externally-funded activities in which a formal written agreement, i.e., a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, is entered into by recipient (UVM) and sponsor Supports research, public service, or instructional efforts at the university Sponsored Project Training Program Characteristics of sponsored projects Statement of work Clear period of performance Reporting requirements ◦ Programmatic & financial ◦ External audits ◦ Return of unspent funds Special facilities/accommodations Sponsored Project Training Program Common terms Grant - assistance mechanism Contract - procurement mechanism Cooperative Agreement - similar to a grant but with more involvement from sponsor OMB Circulars ◦ A-21, cost principles ◦ A-133, audit Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Subrecipient Cost share Sponsored Project Administration Integrated office supporting faculty and sponsors on activities within the grant life cycle ◦ Collaborates with business unit administrators in providing this support Focus on service, compliance, and capacity Solely responsible for accepting awards on behalf of UVM Sponsored Project Training Program Grant Life Cycle Sponsored Project Training Program Find Funding Alert services ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ InfoEd SMARTS NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts National Science Foundation Update Grants.gov Databases ◦ InfoEd SPIN (Sponsored Programs Information Network) ◦ Community of Science ◦ PIVOT Grant proposal writing resources Sponsored Project Training Program Find Funding SPA provides individualized services to UVM faculty, staff, and students in their search for funding opportunities Contact Hilda Alajajian at 6-1322 to schedule an appointment https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=findfundi ng.html Sponsored Project Training Program Proposal Development & Submission Collaboration between PI, business unit administrator, and SPA Determining PI eligibility ◦ Faculty and professionally qualified staff with a .50 FTE or greater ◦ Emeriti faculty, with dept & college approval ◦ https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=pieligibility.ht ml Sponsored Project Training Program Proposal Development & Submission Contact SPA early and often ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Intent to apply Sponsor guidelines Funding restrictions Draft budget & scope of work Budget development Subawards Interpretation of university federal & sponsor regulations Completion of agency forms & certifications Sponsored Project Training Program Proposal Development & Submission PI responsibilities ◦ Writing the proposal, scope of work ◦ Responsible for the successful routing and approval of the proposal ◦ Ultimately responsible for proposal submission ◦ Coordinating with sub awardees ◦ Get the approval of Dean/Chair on Levels of effort Staff on the project Cost share Space Sponsored Project Training Program Proposal Development & Submission Dept Chair reviews & approves proposal prior to submission ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Quality Consistency with unit mission Effort Cost share commitments Space Proposal Development & Submission Business unit administrator responsibilities: ◦ Assist PI with budget & other administrative tasks ◦ Confirm chartstrings for cost share commitments ◦ Assist, if applicable, with decisions on budget & space availability Dept admin toolkit https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=department administratortoolkit.html UVM Fact Sheet https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=uvmfactshee t.html Sponsored Project Training Program Proposal Development & Submission Regulatory research requirements (use of human subjects, animals, recombinant DNA, etc.) ◦ Research Protections Office http://www.uvm.edu/rpo/ Financial conflicts of interest ◦ https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=coi_new_ann ouncement.html University policies & operating procedures Sponsored Project Training Program InfoEd Proposal Development is used by the PI to: ◦ Upload proposal documents ◦ Route proposals for internal approvals ◦ System-to-system proposal submissions (NIH) Proposal Tracking is used by the PI & business unit administrators to: ◦ Track & report – current & pending support data ◦ View proposal documents Sponsored Project Training Program InfoEd – Training Resources For questions/training, contact Cathy Ruley Condon at [email protected] or 6-3360 or visit InfoEd website https://www.uvm.edu/~infoed/ Training opportunity: Getting the most out of InfoEd Wednesday, October 31, 1:30 – 3:30 InfoEd login - https://spogi.uvm.edu/ Sponsored Project Training Program Award Acceptance & Set up Award receipt & Acceptance ◦ Final negotiations including budget revisions if any – Federal/Private or industry ◦ Clarification of reporting & invoicing terms ◦ Clarification of publication, data ownership & Intellectual Property rights ◦ Clarification of indemnification and insurance requirements ◦ Adhering to applicable university policies & procedures PI responsibilities ◦ Review and approve scope of work, technical reporting requirements, and other terms and conditions ◦ Work with SPA to negotiate contract as needed Sponsored Project Training Program Award Acceptance & Set up Advance account (aka guaranteed funding) ◦ https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=advancedaccount s.html ◦ Requested by PI with assistance from business unit administrator ◦ Approved by department chair and/or dean Unless AA is used, award document must be fully executed before: ◦ Work begins ◦ Chartstring can be set up Sponsored Project Training Program Award Acceptance & Set up Set up in Peoplesoft ◦ Budget information & chartstrings – including cost share ◦ Reporting & Invoicing terms & conditions ◦ Additional terms & conditions Set up in InfoEd ◦ RPO approvals ◦ Conflict of Interest information Issues delaying the set up ◦ Research protection approvals ◦ Conflict of interest disclosures ◦ Institutional procedures, such as cost policy justification forms Award Acceptance & Set up Notification sent to PI & business unit administrator once award is set up ◦ Identifies unique terms & conditions Sponsored Project Training Program Award Management Critical component of the award life cycle Continuous monitoring during this phase of ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Expenses Rebudgeting Cost transfers Cost sharing Actions requiring prior approval from sponsor PI responsibilities ◦ Manage project personnel, including subrecipients ◦ Ensures meeting of cost share commitments, including third party commitments ◦ Periodical monitoring of expenses with the assistance of the business unit administrator ◦ Seeks prior approvals from sponsor when necessary ◦ Approves sub recipient invoices ◦ Ensures timely & accurate effort reporting of personnel Award Management SPA’s role during this process ◦ Financial analysts acts as the first point of contact for requests related to PeopleSoft Rebudgeting Journal Entry approval Budget checking errors ◦ Research Administrators will assist in the preparation & submission of prior approval requests, including extensions ◦ Financial Analysts do an annual review of the various terms & conditions for federal awards and per award terms for private awards ◦ Financial Analysts do interim financial reports as required by the sponsor ◦ Financial Analysts receive the subrecipient invoices, analyze them for expense allowability & other terms & conditions and forward to the PI for approval Award Management Business unit administrator responsible for: ◦ Reviewing and analyzing financial activity ◦ Monitoring cost share and effort commitments ◦ Should meet with PIs at least quarterly Learning opportunity: Grant Financial Management: Tools & Best Practice Wednesday, November 7, 1:30 – 3:30 Sponsored Project Training Program Award Management Other units that help with the process ◦ Procurement Services Purchase orders, check requests & purcards ◦ General Accounting Travel advances & reimbursements ◦ Cost Accounting Services Effort reporting Space & Equipment Inventory ◦ Payroll Services Sponsored Project Training Program Award Closeout SPA prepares and circulates monthly reports of awards: ◦ Ending within 90 days, or ◦ Has ended within the last 30 days An email from the Financial Analyst: ◦ Confirming final expenses ◦ Requesting clarification on expenses that are miscoded, unusual based on the scope of work of the project, or potentially unallowable ◦ Listing any pending transactions that need to be processed PI responsibilities ◦ All expenses have been accounted for or have been forwarded to SPA, including the sub recipient expenses ◦ Cost share commitments have been met ◦ Final Technical/Progress reports have been sent ◦ Final invention statement, if applicable, has been sent Award Closeout Business Unit Admin responsibilities ◦ Assist the PI with meeting their responsibilities ◦ Ensures that cost share is correctly and fully accounted for against the department chartstring SPA responsibilities ◦ Responsible for preparing & submitting financial reports ◦ Closeout in PS & InfoEd ◦ Facilitate invention and other closeout reporting with PIs and others, as needed Sponsored Project Training Program PeopleSoft System of record for financial & human resource data Source of internal control ◦ Budget limited to the awarded amount ◦ Only approved categories set up ◦ Exceptions highlighted Used for ◦ Accounting & tracking expenses based on chartstring ◦ Reporting of these expenses using various tools Sponsored Project Training Program PeopleSoft – Training & Resources See UVM Learning Services website for training opportunities & online resources https://www.uvm.edu/hrs/?Page=skills/dev elop_skills.html PeopleSoft login https://www.uvm.edu/~erp/portal/ Sponsored Project Training Program Grant Life Cycle Sponsored Project Training Program Outside of Grant Life Cycle Cash management & collections Subrecipient monitoring USDA federal formula funds Audit coordination ◦ Learning opportunity: What happens if your grant gets audited? Wednesday, October 10, 1:30 – 3:30 Sponsored Project Training Program Roles & Responsibilities Overview Clearly delineate roles and responsibilities ◦ Eliminate duplication of effort ◦ Address tasks that were falling through the cracks ◦ Increase efficiency Ensure those engaged in grant lifecycle understand their functions Mitigate compliance risks & audit findings Sponsored Project Training Program 33 Roles Principal Investigator (PI) Business Unit Administrator Sponsored Project Administration (SPA) Department Head/Chair Dean VP for Research and Dean of Graduate College VP for Finance and Administration Sponsored Project Training Program 34 Principal Investigator (PI) Must participate to a significant intellectual degree in sponsored project Bears primary responsibility for all essential aspects of work being carried out May delegate tasks to business and support staff; but ultimately responsible for project Sponsored Project Training Program 35 PI Responsibilities Programmatic ◦ Completes progress reports ◦ Monitors subrecipients Compliance ◦ Satisfies regulatory research requirements ◦ Ensures accurate and timely effort reporting for project personnel ◦ Discloses conflicts of interest when required Administrative/fiscal ◦ Monitors project’s financial status ◦ Manages project within budget limits ◦ Ensures that cost-share requirements are met Business Unit Administrator Provides financial, human resource, reporting and other administrative support services for Principal Investigators Has a general understanding of: ◦ Federal and other sponsor policies and regulations ◦ University policies and procedures ◦ College guidelines as they pertain to University grants and contracts Sponsored Project Training Program 37 Bus Unit Admin Responsibilities Assists PI in proposal submission Serves as resource to PI for any financial or human resource issue Assists PI in meeting compliance requirements, such as effort reporting & subrecipient monitoring Supports PI in monitoring a project’s financial status, including ensuring: ◦ Expenses are allowable and allocable ◦ Cost share commitments are met Sponsored Project Administration (SPA) Central university office involved in the university’s sponsored research enterprise and other sponsored activities Use an integrated approach to partnering with business unit administrators in support of researchers and sponsors throughout the grant lifecycle Sponsored Project Training Program 39 SPA Responsibilities Disseminates funding opportunity information Reviews proposals for compliance with university policies and sponsor proposal guidelines Approves and authorizes submission of proposals on behalf of the institution Reviews, negotiates, and approves terms and conditions of award Writes, negotiates, executes, and monitors subaward agreements Sponsored Project Training Program 40 SPA Responsibilities Provides guidance and training to research community about federal, sponsor, and university regulations and policies Prepares invoices and financial reports Manages cash Additional Resources Dean’s Offices Roles and Responsibilities: http://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=rolesandresponsibilities.html Sponsored Project Training Program: https://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=sptp.html Quick Compliance Guide for PIs: http://www.uvm.edu/spa/documents/quickcomplianceguide.pdf UVM & Federal Policies: http://www.uvm.edu/spa/?Page=uvmandfederalpolicies.html Sponsored Project Training Program 42 Introduction to Sponsored Projects Questions? Sponsored Project Training Program Learning Objectives Participants will: ◦ Receive an overview of Sponsored Project Administration ◦ Learn about the grant lifecycle ◦ Understand the roles and responsibilities of investigators, chairs and deans, and central units, in addition to how they as business unit administrators fit in ◦ Know where to go for help and become aware of future learning opportunities Sponsored Project Training Program