Academic Policies

30. Guidelines Governing the Preperation, Submission, Administration, and Completion of Grants and Contracts at Capital College

Purpose

This guideline establishes standard procedures for the preparation, submission, administration, and completion of all grants and contracts at Capital College. Other issues related to the research enterprise, e.g., use of Human Subjects, salary savings, course releases for research will appear in subsequent guidelines as necessary.

Introduction

These guidelines are based on general University guidelines and policies as articulated by the Vice President for Research, the Office of Sponsored Programs, the federal Office of Management and Budget, the various Institutional Review Boards, and the Board of Trustees, all of which can be accessed easily here and other University websites.

Policies

All Capital College faculty must follow the policies noted below as well as those referred to in Penn State’s research publications as revised, which are available at here.

RA01 - Determining the Allowability, Allocability, and Reasonableness of Costs on Sponsored Projects
RA02 - Acceptability and Evaluating of Services, Equipment or Property Donated to Federally Sponsored Projects
RA04 - Making Revisions to Budgets and Program Plans on Federally Sponsored Projects
RA03 - Preparing Budgets (Cost Estimates) For Sponsored Projects
RA 5 - Significant Financial Interest Disclosure for Sponsored Project's Investigators
RA 10 - Handling Inquiries/Investigations Into Questions in Ethics in Research and in Other Scholarly Activities
AD 47 - General Standards of Professional Ethics
HR 76 - Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
HR 80 - Faculty Consulting Practice HR 91 - Conflicts of Interest
RAG02 - University Equipment Matching Funds Program
RAG03 - Assistantships / Traineeships Matching Funds Program
RAG05 - Fixed Price Agreements - Residual Balance
RAG06 - Applying Fringe Benefit and Facilities and Administration (F&A) Rates to Sponsored Projects and Other Miscellaneous Funds

Assignment of Grant Supervision Responsibilities

The Provost and Dean has given theAssociate Provost and Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies the responsibility for supervising all grants at Capital College. The Office of the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies works directly with the University’s Office of Sponsored Programs and The Graduate School to further the research goals of the University.

Persons Subject to This Guideline

This guideline applies to all faculty, staff, and students of the Capital College and all grants, contracts, services, or any other externally supported activities related to the College’s research and educational outreach activities including any projects developed jointly through the Office of Development. All faculty must also adhere to the policies governing the use of Human Subjects, which are available at here and other University sites.

Projects Subject to this Guideline

All external grants, contracts, or gifts with conditions or deliverables are covered by this guideline as well as all other applicable University policies.

Responsibility for Administering This Guideline

The primary responsibility for ensuring compliance with all grants, contracts, sponsored programs, and other externally supported activities rests with the Principal Investigator and the Budget Executive/School Director. The Senior Associate Dean and the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies will supervise all externally sponsored activities and report regularly to the Provost and Dean on the status of the College’s research enterprise.

Critical Stages of the Grant Process

All grants are subject to five critical review periods. The timetables for these stages will depend on the requirements of the sponsor and the deadlines outlined in the Request for Proposal [RFP] or grant announcement. Faculty should always discuss their research ideas and proposals with the School or Unit Director and/or senior mentors when such are assigned so that the individual projects match the research goals of the College and the University. The five stages outlined below will vary depending on the type of grant or project, the requirements of the sponsor, and other criteria established by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies to facilitate the research enterprise of the University.

Pre-proposal Stage – Consultation with potential faculty and staff participants, the School Directors, and the Office of the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies should lead to a draft proposal for review
Submission Stage – Review of the proposal with School Director, Financial Officer, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, and other staff as designated by the ADRGS to ensure that all the provisions of this policy and the Office of Sponsored Programs have been followed.
Award Stage – Once the University and the College receive the notice of award, the team will reconvene to prepare all the details for the administration of the grant. Faculty Salary Distribution will be arrange at this time and approved by the School Director.
Pre-Completion Stage – Principal Investigator meets with Office of Research and Graduate Studies [Grants Administrator and Associate Dean as required] and the Financial Officer to begin preparation for the closeout of the grant, determine the final budget details, and arrange for reports to sponsors.
Completion Stage – All documents and deliverables forwarded to sponsor, and all financial reports completed.

Expectations and Procedures

This guideline cannot specify every exigency arising from a preparation or administration of grant or contract. The procedures and expectations outlined below establish the minimum requirements for meeting the objectives of these guidelines.

All grants and contracts must identify all personnel involved at every stage of the grant and the percent of effort contributed by each individual. At not time can the percent of effort exceed 100 percent.
All salary requirements must be specified before any request is submitted. Such salary requirements as extra compensation, salary savings, the periods of the extra compensation, the provisions for course release, and all other items related to compensation but not limited to those identified above must be included with the original proposal.
Match budgets must be established at the submission stage. The match requirement budget must be specifically identified for all grants and contracts. That budget must contain information on the source of funds, all fringes benefits/expenses, and allotment. This requirement, which is mandated by federal and state laws, must be approved in writing by the Budget Administrator and by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies before any proposal is submitted.
If any personnel are to be hired on grant funds, the Budget Executive must certify that funds are available to support the position[s] if the sponsor delays the grant award, identify the source of the funds, obtain approval from the Dean’s office if the funds are not available in the academic or research unit. This also applies to fringe benefit costs.
Proposal budgets must list specific personnel. All course releases, extra compensation plans, and/or related issues should be discussed with the faculty member’s School Director and/or the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies as early in the proposal process as possible.
To help the grant administrator[s] track the percent of effort required for any project, the principal investigator will utilize a Microsoft Excel “workbook” for salary distribution instead of the current Faculty Salary Plan (FSP) form. This form will be common to all grants or projects requiring “percent of effort” reports. At not time can any Penn State employee exceed 100 percent of effort.
The FSP form must be approved by the Budget Executive and the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies after each has reviewed the salary distribution, the budget sources to be billed for the salary, the specific dates including fiscal years for grants extending beyond a single year, and any other issues related to salary. An Excel workbook or spreadsheet should show the salary distribution in detail for the entire grant period.
Budget administrators and/or Budget Executives must acknowledge in writing whenever faculty, staff, and/or post doctoral fellows are to be paid from grants. The Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in cooperation with the appropriate College offices will determine the procedures to be followed whenever there are delays with the award, problems with the grant agreement or contract, and other difficulties related to the distribution of compensation. The Associate Dean, Financial Officer, and School Director should agree on how to distribute the funds and/or pay salary obligations. Any central budget charges must be approved by the Senior Associate Dean and reported to the Financial Officer or delegate.
The PI and a representative from the research and/or finance office should meet soon after an agreement is signed to review the budget and ensure that the BARA form is processed properly.
All faculty and staff must follow the Penn State policies and guidelines regarding exclusions and restrictions imposed by the sponsor. The College will not support unallowed charges for nay project. Such expenses will be billed to the respective academic units or individuals in accordance with applicable University practices.
The practice of issuing advance fund numbers must be monitored carefully by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies. As soon as a grant is awarded, the review stages mentioned above must be followed. No grant should remain in “advance” status after the official award notification is made. The individual budget unit rather than the College will be liable if the College does not have a signed agreement prior the receipt of partial or full funding from a sponsor.
The Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies must review and approve all agreements after the signatories have completed the final version for submission.
All financial reporting for any Capital College miscellaneous or research fund must be completed by the Finance Office and/or reviewed by that office for accuracy before any proposals are submitted to a sponsor.
The PI and the School Director must identify who and how invoices will be prepared, the invoice frequency, and the detail required for payment. Whenever possible Capital College must use the standard invoice wording in Penn State contracts to ensure that Research Accounting at University Park will handle the invoicing. The College prefers that, whenever possible, Research Accounting should invoice clients or agencies.
No PI or administrator is authorized to sign agreements containing clauses that are contrary to Penn State policies or contain extra deliverables/requirements.
The office of the ADRGS will review agreements whenever sponsors suggest or require changes to the original agreement or amendments adding any new restrictions or deliverable requirements.

Given the responsibilities of the principal investigators, budget executives, academic administrators for fostering the research enterprise at Capital College, the overall administrative goals are to comply with all applicable procedures and policies regardless of whether they are covered in this document. A strict adherence to common and reasonable practices will ensure that the College will exhibit exemplary behavior and remain accountable to all its sponsors and constituents.

Reviewed by the Office of Sponsored Programs

Approved by Academic Leadership Council (Pending)

Approved by the Dean (Pending)

The Office of Sponsored Programs helps faculty obtain external funding from government agencies, private industries, and private foundations to support their creative and scholarly activities. Last year, it oversaw the submission of 3,633 research proposals and processed 4,131 awards for $390 million.